Ninjago: Possession Rewritten
by Cerenda
Summary: "I...I'm not going to be under your possession forever. You have to let me go eventually," Lloyd said, although his voice wasn't that convincing. Morro laughed. "And why would I allow that, after all the trouble I went through to get to the memory that bothered you the most?"
1. The Green Shade of Envy

Chapter 1: The Green Shade of Envy

"Can someone tell me why we needed to use our _elemental_ dragons to get some supplies again?" Jay asked.

The ninja's dragons flew over the sea, the colors rippling over the waves. Past the water and the score of ships the ninja could see the coast of Ninjago and faintly, the outlines of Steep Wisdom, the tea shop Wu had purchased after the Tournament.

Recalling Wu's solemn demeanor after Garmadon's sacrifice Zane spoke carefully. "Sensei wishes to settle down. He is more than ready to prepare for retirement at his age." Besides Lloyd, Zane had the most ease with his dragon, and he easily steered his alongside Jay.

"In that case," Cole said, swooping down on his dragon, "Let's place a little bet. Last one to the harbor has to do most of the unpacking!"

"Too bad for you since my dragon has the best element. Fire!" Kai said. His dragon roared and spat fire at the three, causing Jay to fall off his dragon. With a laugh Kai shot forward as Jay scrambled back onto his dragon.

Jay hacked out a chunk of seaweed and wiped his mouth. "Hey, no fair! You shouldn't be able to use your powers!"

Cole and Zane sped ahead of him to trail Kai. Cole yelled after him. "Then you better hurry up motormouth!"

"Let's see if you'll be saying the same thing when I'm the first one there dirt for brains!"

The three dragons narrowed in one another until Zane managed to pull past them.

Kai looked back, seeing that Zane was closing in on him. "That doesn't look good." Turning back Kai spotted a large fishing boat and smirked. "Let's see how you like this!"

Kai steered his dragon narrowly above the ship, grazing the sails before zooming past it.

The fisherman grumbled and raised his fist. "You nearly blew my sails clean off! I'll get you-hey, you better watch where you're going!"

Zane yelled as his dragon slid over the deck before disappearing. He spun a few times and groaned, grabbing his head. The fisherman was above him and was holding his pole out, his face curled in anger.

Zane managed a weak smile. "Perhaps we can work this out?"

Above them Cole and Jay sped past.

Cole turned to Jay. "Want to team up to take down hot-head?"

Jay swooped his dragon to Kai's left. "Hey Kai, I'm not getting too close, am I?"

"If that's the best plan you can come up with-Hey, you can't both team up!" Kai shouted as Cole appeared to the right, pinning Kai between them.

"I thought you made it clear that there are no rules in racing when you had your dragon shoot fire at us," Cole said before knocking Kai's dragons and speeding ahead with Jay.

Kai groaned, turning back. "They're not the only two who can team up, right…Lloyd?"

Kai squinted, and in the distance, he could see the faint outline of the green dragon. Before he could call out Zane flew above him.

"Dare I say that this is payback?"

Groaning Kai patted his dragon. "Come on boy, we've got this."

With a small nod, the dragon went after Zane. Once the four reached the harbor they circled above it, dropping down supplies and laughing.

The dragons dissipated as the ninja jumped down, Jay screaming as he fell into some of the packages.

"Need a hand?" Nya asked, moving the boxes aside so that Jay could stand up, laughing awkwardly. "For all the times, you've used your dragon I'm surprised that you still have a hard time landing."

Above them Lloyd's dragon finally circled over and dissipated as Lloyd jumped down. Kai thumped his back.

"Looks like we know who's stuck packing."

Lloyd laughed weakly, rubbing his neck. "Yea."

"That's enough."

The six turned to see the tea shop's bell ringing as Wu and Misako exited. Wu used his staff to tap the boxes they had dropped off.

"There is much work to be done."

Kai turned to Lloyd. "Are you sure you don't need help? You seem…out of it."

"No, it's fine," Lloyd said, picking up one of the boxes. "I need to help my mom anyway. I can't leave her here to do it all by herself."

"Lloyd, it's okay to be honest with me."

"Huh?"

Kai sighed, looking at the harbor. The sun was setting in the sky, orange and pink brushing the horizon. "I know that it's hard to lose your father. I felt the same way when Nya and I lost dad. But you don't have to feel like you're on your own. We're all here for you." Kai ruffled Lloyd's hair and smirked. "From now I'll watch over you green machine. If you need anything I'll be inside. I need to get my stuff into our room."

Grabbing his boxes Kai walked into the shop while Lloyd focused on the horizon. Misako walked up to him, placing her hand on her son's shoulder.

"He's right Lloyd," Misako said softly. "You need to spend time with your friends. I'm not going anywhere."

Misako gave Lloyd a hug and they stayed there for a few moments before Lloyd released her.

"I'm sorry mom. I guess I was nervous that I'd lose you too after what happened to dad."

"Your father was a noble man. I'm glad that you're trying to follow in his footsteps, but even your father knew when to let go and have fun." Misako turned to look at Wu and sighed.

"Is something wrong?"

"Nothing dear. Why don't you spend time with your friends? I'll try to convince Wu to pack later."

Lloyd beamed. "Thanks mom. Tell me if you need anything."

As Lloyd ran into the shop Misako walked to Wu as he set down a box.

"We might as well pack later."

Wu sighed and Misako stepped forward.

"Is everything all right?"

"I am…unsure of what to do," Wu said softly. "Now with my brother gone I realized that I don't have much time left. I hoped to surround myself with what I love for that time. Besides, I have nothing more to teach my students. My role as a sensei has been fulfilled."

"I think that you are making the same mistake that I did," Misako said. "Wu, do not run away from your problems. You need to be there for your students and be honest with them about how you feel. I'll be inside if you need me."

Wu sighed, leaning against the boxes and looking up at the sky. For a flicker of a moment he saw the clouds curl into the face of his brother before it faded into the darkening sky. Giving the sky one final look Wu grabbed his staff and walked to the tea shop's entrance.

* * *

"And another win," Cole said, reclining back on the couch. "That's two to nothing."

Kai threw down the controller. "Yea, well that's because you have Zane on your team. He's probably using some cheats or something to win."

"Correction," Zane said calmly, leaning past Cole. "I have just memorized all of your moves. Kai, I do not believe that pressing the attack button repeatedly will be more successful than it has been the last time."

"What's the point of shielding?" Kai asked, shrugging. "I like button mashing."

Nya walked into the room and rose her brow, seeing the boxes on the floor around the TV. "So, you guys couldn't help unbox more than just the TV?" Sitting next to Jay she looked at the screen. "Don't you guys get sick of this game anyway?"

"Ooh, we could get that new Prince Donegan game!" Jay said. "It's about the invading space turtles trying to take over all of the planets in the Multiverse!"

"I don't know if you've forgotten, but we're kind of in a pinch for money right now," Cole said. "Nearly all of our savings went to the tea shop."

Jay deflated. "Ugh, I forgot. Why couldn't Sensei get something cooler, like tech for the Bounty?"

"Sensei has reasons that he is probably uncomfortable sharing," Zane said. "We should just support him through this now until he wishes to speak to us about it."

While the ninja thought this over the tea shop door opened and Lloyd walked in, smiling.

"Hey guys, what did I miss?"

Kai smiled and invited Lloyd to sit next to him. "Did you really get all of that packing done already?"

Lloyd smirked. "Mom said that she would talk to Uncle about doing it later. It's supposed to rain at night though so we'll have to take the stuff in before then."

"Since we're all here why don't we have a three on three match?" Nya suggested. "I think it'll be fun."

Jay looked at the arrangement on the couch: Kai, Lloyd, himself, then Nya, Cole, and Zane. Now that his quarrel with Cole was over he had been trying to subtly get himself closer to Nya. Not wanting to have to fight against Nya he stood on the couch and pointed dramatically to Zane.

"Why don't we make sure that Zane isn't cheating? New round-all of us against Zane!"

"I'm up for it," Nya said. "Although I'll warn you advance-I have seen you enough times to know how this game works."

"That will prove to be no challenge," Zane said, tapping his head. "After all, I will not be alone."

Pixal nodded, appearing in Zane's vision. "I will help you, but I question the purpose of this Zane. Is it really necessary to put so much energy into a game?"

Cole leaned forward, hovering his hand over the start button. "In one, two, three…go!"

The six were playing when the door opened. Lloyd looked up to see his Uncle slip inside, and walk silently past them without any sort of acknowledgement.

Lloyd frowned, but before he knew it the game flashed VICTORY in bold letters across the screen.

"Hah!" Jay exclaimed, throwing his arms up. "We won!"

Zane frowned, studying the game's screen before turning to the others. "The game flashed irregularly for one moment, and I was unable to control my character before the round ended. Someone definitely used a cheat."

Cole smirked. "Seems like someone's a sore loser."

"Well," Nya said quickly, getting up. "I better get my Samurai X stuff out. I'll see you guys later."

"I-I better go too," Lloyd said.

Kai raised his brow. "Why, so you can do more unpacking? Aren't we doing it later anyway?"

Lloyd jumped and rubbed his neck. "Well, not exactly. I just have to go find my toothbrush. You know what the dentist said about eating too many sweets last time."

"Your…toothbrush?" Kai asked.

"Hah, well see you later!"

Lloyd left the four with incredulous stares before slowing down when he reached the hallway. Slowly, he followed the path that his Uncle had taken earlier and leaned to the door that led to his Uncle's room.

"Uncle, are you in here?" Lloyd froze, seeing his Uncle quickly put the book he was holding in one of the boxes he had earlier.

"I was just unpacking," Wu said, using his staff to stand up. "Which is something that the rest of you should be doing instead of playing games. In fact, you should be training."

"Of course, Uncle." Lloyd paused, and walked forward. "Um, if you don't mind me asking, what were you looking at? I never saw that book before."

Wu looked stern, but slowly his face fell. Setting his staff down Wu opened the box again to reveal a set of photo albums.

"My brother," Wu said softly, taking one of the albums. "And your father was a great man. We took pictures of ourselves that I have come to collect over the years. It wasn't easy recovering them when the monastery burned down, but I have done my best to preserve them."

Wu opened the album and Lloyd recognized the picture. It had his father, his mother, and his Uncle standing next to each other, with his father having an evil glint in his eyes. Wu flipped the page and it showed a younger version of his father with his grandfather. The red was gone from his eyes.

Both were silent as Wu flipped the pages, each going back to when they were younger. Lloyd silently sat next to his Uncle, absorbed in the pictures that went by.

Wu laughed. "Isn't it strange how I organized it? I wanted to capture moments of when things seemed easier, but instead all it reminds me of is how old I am getting."

"You're not old Uncle," Lloyd said quickly. "You're just…getting sort of up there."

"Like your father I will leave this world eventually," Wu said, shutting the book. "I have grown selfish, trying to make the most of my years, believing that my students didn't need me. Your mother cleared my mind of those thoughts." Wu reached for his staff and stood up. "If you wish, you can look through them. I will meanwhile join the others, as I should have done earlier. Don't be afraid to let your emotions go Lloyd, but don't get caught up in the past."

With his staff tapping, Wu left the room, leaving Lloyd with the albums.

Lloyd silently reached for one of them, and opened it to a random page. It showed his father and himself when he was younger. Lloyd's breath hitched and some tears fell, but he caught himself and wiped his eyes.

"I have to be strong for the team. I'm not a little kid anymore."

After he collected himself he went through the rest of the album and went to put it back in the box when one of the books caught his eye.

The cover was green, and after looking back to make sure that his Uncle was gone, Lloyd opened the book.

"I guess Uncle would have had students before," Lloyd said, seeing a much younger Wu standing next to a series of children in front of the monastery. He flipped the page, and found his Uncle standing next to one student, who was about the same age Lloyd was when he discovered that he was the green ninja.

The boy was smiling, but the emotion in his eyes made Lloyd feel uneasy. In his green eyes he saw pain, happiness, and a glint of pride all at once. Turning the next page, he found more pictures of Wu's students, but no matter how much he looked he couldn't find the same boy again.

Lloyd put the album back with shaking hands. Was it just a coincidence that the boy was wearing a green belt? And why was the album green?

Lloyd suddenly felt unsure of himself. He forced himself to grab the album again, and studied the picture of the boy. He put the book closer.

"The monastery," He whispered.

* * *

"Um, Kai, can I ask you something?" Lloyd asked.

They were all carrying the packages into Steep Wisdom's storeroom. Even though the sky had been clear earlier, the stars weren't visible as a dark mass of clouds had settled over them.

Most of their personal possessions were going to be placed into Steep Wisdom, as Destiny's Bounty was commonly targeted by villains.

Kai leaned against the boxes he put down. "What's up?"

"Well, I'm not exactly sure how to word this," Lloyd said, swallowing. "I found an album in Sensei's room, and it had a picture of one of Uncle's students. But he was wearing a green belt and the album was green. I don't know if it was just a coincidence, but just from the way that Uncle looked at him it seemed like he was supposed to be the green ninja."

"The green ninja? Isn't the prophecy already fulfilled at this point?"

"I don't think that it meant something for the future. It looked like there was a green ninja in the past, before me."

"So, like how I thought that I was the green ninja?"

Lloyd looked down. "Sorry for mentioning it."

Kai sighed, and ran his hand through his hair. "No, it's fine. I know that I probably alarmed you when I took Chen's staff and said all those things. There is some part of me that feels that way, but I'm not going to let it take control. It's just part of me. So, I'm not letting up on my promise on helping you." Kai threw his arm around Lloyd's shoulder. "I'm here for you green machine. So, what are we planning on doing?"

"There was a single picture in the album I found," Lloyd explained. "In the background, I could tell that it was the monastery. I'd like to go just with you. I don't want to bother everyone about it or let Uncle know. Besides, it feels more like a green ninja issue." Lloyd watched his Uncle laughing with the others as they carried boxes in and a faint smile grew on his face. "I haven't seen him so happy since…you know."

Kai frowned. He could tell that it had taken Lloyd a lot of effort to ask him for help. Lloyd didn't like letting the others know that he was weak-if Kai hadn't talked to him earlier he probably would have gone off on his own. But Kai was glad that he made this step. If Lloyd was at least admitting that he needed help Kai wasn't going to refuse him and make Lloyd even more hesitant about taking the initiative.

"Well, we'll have to go later tonight then. How about ten? I can grab the keys before we go to bed so we can sneak out."

Lloyd beamed. "Thanks Kai. I really appreciate it."

* * *

It was rather jarring to see that the dojo that had once looked over Ninjago was now only a skeleton of its former glory. With the clouds rolling in as it settled into night it seemed even more sinister, less homely than Kai remembered.

"So, you guys lived here before the Bounty?" Lloyd asked. They were making their way up the long series of steps carved into the side of the mountain to reach the top. Lloyd looked up at the monastery with a frown. "I never did see it up close when, well, you know. All I have known is the Bounty."

Kai shrugged, but he did feel a moment of sadness at seeing the monastery like this. "Well, it was a lot better before the fire. It really does bring back memories though. This was the first place that I started to train to become a ninja with Sensei."

The wind picked up and Kai pulled up his hood.

Lloyd smiled teasingly. "Are you afraid of getting your hair wet?"

Kai lightly punched his shoulder. "I've just always hated water. Seems to put a damper on my powers. Although, my hair is always a priority."

Finally reaching the top the two made their way through the remains of the archway. The wind blew fiercely and Kai swore, pulling his hood tighter.

Lloyd tried to imagine what the dojo had looked like from Kai had told him as he felt his chest tighten. Turning to Kai he chuckled nervously.

"So, do you want to split up and look?"

Kai looked at the sky and frowned. "Something about this place seems off. We should stay close. Kay?"

Normally Lloyd would have protested but when the wind howled and he saw lightening flash from the corner of his eyes he just nodded weakly.

They had just started to sift through the rubble when more lightening flashed down and thunder boomed through the ground.

Kai started to run. "C'mon, we need to get out of here before it-Wow…" Kai slid to a stop, almost falling through a green teenage boy that had just flashed in front of him. The boy smiled and flicked his wrist and before Kai knew it he was several inches off the ground.

"Um…hi?"

The boy snapped his wrist again and Kai swung forward onto the ground.

Kai wiped his mouth, getting up into a fighting position. "Okay, that was not the welcome I was expecting. Although I don't know what a glowing person would do otherwise."

The boy chuckled and with a snap, disappeared. Kai looked around wildly before the boy reappeared above them.

"Is this really the threat that the green ninja poses? Not even fighting his own battles? Wu must have let down on his standards."

"What do you know about Wu?" Kai growled. Using a pillar from the monastery Kai jumped up and tried to hit him. But instead of hitting the boy he fell through him and landed in the rubble.

"There's no point in trying to hurt a ghost. Thankfully, the opposite is true for me."

The boy swept down and landed hits on Kai; Kai tried to hit back, but all his punches went through the boy.

Lloyd jumped down and sent a blast of energy at the ghost.

The ghost smirked. "Ah, now this is what I wanted to see. The 'green ninja.'"

Lloyd's eyes widened and he turned to Kai. "It-It's the same boy from Uncle's photo!"

The ghost appeared between them. "I heard your voice shake. What are you…afraid of ghosts? Nenagh!"

The wind gathered in his fists and it blasted down onto Kai.

Kai fell back, but he managed to flip over and run with Lloyd. Both of their hands lighted with their elemental powers.

"How are we supposed to hurt him?" Kai asked, frustrated as his fireball went through the ghost cleanly. "All of our attacks go through him!"

Lloyd leapt down from a strike and breathed heavily. "I-I don't know. I'm trying to think of a weakness for ghosts or wind but nothing comes to mind."

Kai yelled, running at the ghost, ready to land a punch before the ghost growled and grabbed him.

Kai struggled as the ghost swiftly flew across the monastery and peered over the mountain's side.

"Why don't you just get out of my way?!" The ghost seethed. "I don't need you to distract me from my goal!"

"Kai!" Lloyd ran forward and energy pulsed in his hands, but the ghost raised his other hand.

Seemingly gaining his composure the ghost continued. "If you want your friend back you will do as I say. Otherwise, he falls to his doom."

"Lloyd, don't do it!" Kai shook, trying to get free. "He's up to something bigger. Don't give in!"

As thunder rumbled in the distance Lloyd trembled. "I can't lose you Kai. Not after what happened to my father…"

The ghost smirked. "Did you think that I would actually let one of your Sensei's beloved students go?"

The ghost let go of Kai, and as Kai fell rain started to fall. The ghost's face tightened.

"No! I will not give up so easily!"

Lloyd, who watched Kai fall, went on his knees. Tears started to fall. As he looked up he saw the terrified face of the ghost that matched his own before everything faded into nothingness.


	2. Morro

Chapter 2: Morro

 **I was really nervous about publishing this and I wasn't expecting to get so much reception. Thank you to everyone who favorited and followed this story-it really helped to increase my confidence!**

 **Steampunk Wilson: I wasn't expecting a review so soon after I published this, but I was happy to see your review. Don't worry, I have most of the story written out, so I will definitely try my best to edit it all and publish it.**

 **Wyrenfire and Monolaymoo: Thank you for your review!**

 **RandomDragon2.0: I also agree that Kai's phobia of water should have been handled better, especially since he didn't seem to have it prior to Possession. I did rewrite his reaction in this chapter, so keep your eyes out.**

 **StoriesAreMagic: I think I almost had a heart attack when I saw that you had reviewed. I absolutely love your stories-thank you so much for writing such a well thought out review!**

 **SkyDreamer12: I don't know if it was as much of the plot holes that bothered me, but more of the flow of Possession. I felt that Possession didn't really flow well, you know? But I especially agree about Nya-she barely gets to be with the others on the team!**

 **NinjagoMLP77 and Star: Thank you!**

 **Guest: Wow, thank you so much! I don't know if my writing is as good as the Hageman brothers, but I hope that this rewrite can make their ideas stand out better.**

Kai trudged into the teashop and growled, slamming his fist into the wall. The shelves in the shop shook and Nya frowned.

She had been busy unpacking teabags and containers, placing them on the correct places on the shelves all morning, and frankly, she wasn't in the mood for one of Kai's temper tantrums. She looked up, ready to give him a piece of her mind when her face fell, seeing Kai soaked and his face twisted in anger. Most would assume that he was just furious, but knowing her brother Nya could tell that something was wrong.

"Hey, what's up?" She asked softly. "We didn't see you or Lloyd since last night. Did something happen?"

Kai's face fell and for a flicker of a moment Nya could see the sadness lurking in his expression before his face returned.

"It's Lloyd," Kai growled, pressing his head against the wall. "Doesn't he know that his position on the team is more important than mine? I don't think he has learned anything since he's had tomorrow's tea. He might look he's a teenager, but he's still a kid." Kai's voice broke and he slammed his fist back on the shelves, but he refused to say anymore.

"Whatever it is, we'll figure it out. You guys are ninja for a reason after all," Nya said, trying to put a bit of humor into her voice as she placed her hand on her brother's shoulder and steered him to the counter. "Sit down while I go get the others, alright?"

Kai sighed and sat down. When she left he burrowed he ran his hands through his hair and sighed, pressing his head against the counter.

* * *

The ninja along with Misako and Wu were seated in the living room. After listening to Kai's mumbled testimony of the previous night's events Wu sipped his tea calmly and met Kai's gaze.

"So, you say that this ghost attacked you and Lloyd?" Wu said. He took another long sip of his tea and Kai's eyes narrowed. After what seemed like an eternity, Wu put the cup down onto the table in front of them.

"No offense Kai," Cole said, "but this sounds more like one of Jay's weird sci-fi movies. Are you sure you really saw what happened?"

Kai's face darkened dangerously. "Why would I lie about something like this? Lloyd is gone and you're comparing this to one of Jay's stupid movies?"

Jay leaned forward to defend himself, but Cole's warning expression made him sink back into the couch.

"Try to give us more of a description of the ghost then. If we have a lead we can ask around and maybe get some information from the locals."

After fiddling with the empty tea cup Wu sighed, stroking his beard. "That would be unnecessary Cole. I am positive that Kai is speaking the truth and I have an idea of who the culprit is. I believe that it was one of my former students that cornered you at the monastery: Morro."

"Wow, wow, wow," Jay said. "You had another student that you never told us about?"

"Wu has had several students before you four," Misako explained. "He taught for a while at the monastery before the Serpentine Wars broke out."

Misako turned to Wu, expecting him to elaborate, but he didn't say anymore.

That was when Kai lost it.

"That's all you to have to say? Your nephew is captured and all you can do is drink from your stupid cup, telling us about a student we've never heard of before like it's no big deal?"

"Kai…" Nya said with warning. Everyone expected her to tell her brother off, but she instead focused her attention to Wu. "You're actually on to something. I'd also like some answers. Why have we never heard of him before?"

Wu turned to the others, but even Zane reproached him with a stare. Heaving another sigh Wu began to talk again. "While I loved teaching others I secretly hoped that I would one day find a student that surpassed my expectations and could one day wear the robes of the green ninja. I thought that I had found that Morro. But I was wrong. I assume that his rage is what led him to attack and possibly possess Lloyd."

"I don't care what his motivation is," Kai said, throwing his hand down onto the coffee table. "What matters is that we get Lloyd back."

"No offense, but didn't Sensei say possess?" Jay asked, his voice filled with anxiety. "As in 'take control of Lloyd's body'? How are we supposed to even fight against something like that without hurting Lloyd?"

Zane frowned. "Perhaps we can look through some books on exorcisms seeing as how Pixal can find nothing in my database." Zane shook his head, lost in thought. "I will admit, this is something we have never faced before. We have no idea how to approach this without hurting Lloyd. It actually frightens me to some extent…"

"I don't want to add any more stress to the situation, but we need to remember that pretty much every villain we've ever fought before has had goons," Cole said, getting up from his previously relaxed position on the couch. "That leaves the issue that Kai and Lloyd had before with fighting Morro. If Morro has some ghost friends they'll be able to pull us down in a heartbeat."

As the weight of the situation settled over them Nya hissed under her breath as she frantically typed on her laptop. "And we couldn't have any worse timing. I'm getting reports of an attack from the city." She sighed, closing her laptop. "We'll just have to figure things out as we go, seeing as how everything in Ninjago doesn't ever want to give us just a few minutes to collect ourselves."

The ninja sat awkwardly in their seats. Cole looked over his friends and remembered with a hint of pain that Lloyd would usually give them a command before they departed on a mission. After a bit of hesitation Cole stood up.

"Sitting here isn't going to solve anything. I know that we're all hurt by Lloyd getting possessed, but instead of letting that hold us down, we need to take that energy and direct back at Morro full force. If Lloyd was here and it was someone else that was captured, he'd say the same thing."

Seeming to recover their spirits the four called out,"Ninjago!," and ran out the tea shop, following Cole to the docks.

They lifted themselves up, prepared to form their elemental dragons….Except that didn't happen.

In the middle of their cheer they fell into the water and soon sputtered up.

Kai started to breath heavily and quickly pulled himself up onto the dock, giving a sigh of relief.

Jay watched him with a confused expression. "Hey, are you-"

"If you finish that statement I'll personally see to it that the internet knows that you still sleep with Mr. Cuddlywomps at night."

"Uh, I mean, why aren't our elemental dragons working?" Jay asked, laughing awkwardly. "Hah hah …"

"It depends," Zane said. His usual calm face was instead marked with worry. "Do you want to hear my hypothesis that would be bad if true, or just call it an accident due to the stress of figuring out how to deal with the ghosts?"

"Just how bad is this hypothesis?" Cole asked.

"Remember when Lloyd gave up his golden power? His sacrifice allowed us to perform our elemental abilities again. However, with Lloyd possessed I believe that Morro could be preventing his link to us in some way."

"Yea, that's definitely a problem," Cole said, wincing. "Unless anyone has any idea of how we can teleport to New Ninjago City, we're pretty much sitting ducks."

The dock bounced and Nya, in her Samurai X mech, extended her arm out.

"With the Destiny's Bounty in repair and our vehicles sold for the tea shop we'll have to use my exo-suit," Nya said, helping the others up. "Hold on, I don't have any extra seats on this thing."

* * *

"I didn't think that you'd stay here after the others accused you," Misako said, moving around the shop. She stopped at the counter and stared at the door. The lack of customers in the shop was obvious. "We didn't have a chance to send any flyers about our location. I doubt that we'll be very busy today."

Misako turned to Wu, who was trying to busy himself with arranging items on the shelves. She sighed and watched him carefully. "Must I remind you that my son is the victim of all of this? How can you just stand here and not do anything?"

Wu finally looked at Misako and the mask he had worn with the ninja slowly fell. She had never seen such a broken man.

Using his staff Wu lifted himself into a chair at the counter and faced Misako directly. "It isn't Kai's fault. I never thought that I would hear of Morro again. He left with such venom towards me after I told him that he couldn't be the green ninja-he must have spent years trying to prove himself, but died in trying to do so. Is there really any question as to why he would target Lloyd?"

"You should have told them about Morro before," Misako said sternly. "I'm not surprised that they're angry. But what do you think you are doing staying here? Garmadon spent the rest of his life trying to redeem himself-one mistake isn't enough of an excuse to do nothing."

There was a moment of silence. Eventually Wu tilted his head up, revealing his face from the cover of his hat. He gave a nod.

* * *

"Jay, your leg is pressing into my head," Cole complained. "I'm starting to see how it must feel to not have a brain zaptrap."

"Oh, how funny. I bet that was a jab at me, wasn't it?" Jay said. His usual light-hearted tone was gone as he stared forward as Nya piloted the exo-suit over the water.

"Hey, it was just a joke. I didn't mean anything by it." Cole moved to touch Jay's shoulder, but Jay huffed and turned back.

Zane frowned at seeing his brothers fight. He was prepared to interject when he saw a golden-white dragon fly in the distance towards them from the direction of Steep Wisdom. "There's a dragon! That's…strange. I didn't call for any assistance from any of the elemental masters."

Kai held his hand over his eyes to see more clearly. "Oh, it's Wu."

The four exchanged glances.

Wu steered the dragon towards them. The dragon sniffed at them before giving a nod, returning its focus on the faint outline of New Ninjago City in the distance.

"I hope that it won't be too much trouble if I aid in this fight. I don't want you five to go alone when we are unaware of how to fight the ghosts."

"Yea, but since when have you been able to do that?" Jay squealed. "It's so cool! Why haven't you ever done it before?"

"Is there any other secret you want to tell us about?" Kai said.

"Sensei, how are you able to form your dragon with Lloyd possessed?" Zane asked quickly as Kai turned away, refusing to look at Wu. "We actually haven't seen much of your powers. I must admit that I am curious."

Wu suddenly grew silent. He stared across the ripples of water, stroking his dragon's head. The dragon gave him an appreciative snort and closed its eyes. "I inherited the power of creation from my father. I don't like using them often. But considering the need and our situation I will not hesitate to put aside my own reservations."

Cole pushed Kai with his arm and motioned to Wu. With a sigh Kai regarded his Sensei.

"Sensei, I'm…well...how do I put this...Sometimes I let my anger get the best of me-"

Nya coughed loudly.

Kai glared, but relented. "Okay, so maybe I'm a little hot-headed. The point is that I just never thought you could do anything wrong. You've always been our Sensei, you know?" Kai looked up, his eyes filled with sympathy. "But we've all been going through a tough time, so I shouldn't have blamed you for everything. It wasn't your fault that all of this is happening. It's Morro's. And when I get my hands on him-"

"You know, aside from your desire to hurt Morro that was surprisingly sentimental Kai," Nya said.

Kai tried to hide his embarrassment as the others laughed. "Okay I get, hah hah."

"Stay focused ninja. This isn't something to be unprepared for," Wu said. Kai looked at him gratefully. "We'll land in Ninjago's main square where most the alerts were reported."

Nya landed the Samurai X mech onto the main road, Wu following after her on his dragon. Citizens scrambled past them, running from floating objects that pulsed with a green glow.

The ninja jumped down from the mech and regarded the flying cars and telephone poles zooming past them.

Kai groaned. "Great. More ghosts. And now they're having a circus party."

Cole jumped to the side to avoid a traffic light flying at him. "Remember what our main goal is. As weird as this all is it's just a distraction to take us away from Morro."

Jay crossed his arms. "Don't think I don't notice what you're doing."

Cole groaned. "Are you still going on about me taking your robe when you were in the shower? I told you I was sorry at breakfast. I even gave you the toy from the stupid cereal box since you kept whining so much-"

"Do you really think I'm talking about as something like that? Right now? When ghosts are attacking!" Jay waved his hand as a tree flew past them. "I'm talking about all of this 'we're a team' and 'let's go team' stuff. Just because Lloyd's gone doesn't mean that we're going to replace him with you."

The two stared at each other before Nya groaned, forcing them apart. "Really? Is this _really_ the time to be arguing? I'm starting to think that you guys just like to argue over stupid things!"

Cole shook his head. "Nya's right. Let's just focus on getting past the ghosts right now. We don't want them to hurt any citizens because we were too busy arguing to notice."

The ninja ran forward with Nya on her mech while Wu swung his dragon to hit the possessed objects.

"See, there he goes again," Jay said. He quickly came to a stop as a refrigerator dropped in front of him. "Uh…" Jay reached for the refrigerator's handle and jumped back as a ghost sprang from the fridge, throwing herself onto Jay.

The two fell down, flipping over as they both struggled to get on top of the other. Eventually the ghost pinned Jay down and screamed into his ear. All of the ninja groaned until she gave one last wailing screech at the sky and kicked Jay back.

Zane grabbed Jay as he fell back. Jay groaned, grabbing his head. "I know that I just had a ghost scream in my ear, but did anyone else hear that snapping sound?"

Looking back the ninja saw that the building behind them had begun to lurch forward. The citizens inside screamed as the building's base starting to crack. The female ghost screeched with laughter before she disappeared with a pop, leaving the ninja under the falling building.

Zane's eyes widened, seeing people inside the building clambering to get out.

"This is no longer a game that the ghosts are playing on others. They are threatening their lives." Zane said, anger in his voice. With no hesitation, he ran forward to the building's base and threw his hands out. "Ice!" Zane looked at his hands when nothing happened. "Did I do something incorrect?"

"Zane, you have no powers!" Pixal warned. "The building is going to fall in thirty seconds. You must get out of there!"

Just as the building started to collapse a huge gust of wind sent the building back onto its base. A green orb of energy rounded itself around the building, mending the cracks.

A cloaked figure dramatically swung over the building's side before flipping to land in front of the building. The figure looked up and the ninja gasped.

He looked exactly like Lloyd, wearing his original green gi with his mask pulled down tightly. As citizens cheered Morro looked to the retreating form of the screeching ghost.

Running forward he tried to grab the ghost before she disappeared into a truck. The truck started to lurch, threatening to fall onto him. Citizens gasped, but with complete ease Morro lifted his hands and sent a gust of wind forward, sending the truck back.

The ghost screeched as the truck fell onto the ground and disappeared into a burst of green, making the crowd go wild. Morro placed his foot on the truck and waved at the citizens.

As the citizens cheered the ninja continued to focus on the ghosts. Jay went to strike a punch, but the ghost, turning back to see Morro in his victory, nodded to the others before disappearing. Jay's fist instead came to the empty air.

"I have an announcement," Morro said, making the citizen's cheers die down. Despite his raspy voice he managed to keep a good impersonation of Lloyd. After looking down for a moment he returned his gaze back to the citizen's. "I am leaving the ninja team."

Before the citizens could react Morro held up his hand. He suddenly became nervous and fidgety. "The other ninja have been…abusing their powers. As you saw during the battle, they did nothing to truly protect you. S-so, I decided that I needed to leave. I promise that I'll never abandon you and will doing anything for Ninjago's safety."

Kai got up, staring angrily at the crowd circling Morro. "How stupid are they? How can they be buying what he's saying?"

Nya jumped out of her Samurai mech and watched the crowd carefully. "He planned all of this…He knew that when he possessed Lloyd that he would take your powers and used that to his advantage to make us to look like bad fighters…" Nya bit her lip as she processed the magnitude of the situation.

Wu was beginning to steer his dragon around the corner when, with a pop, the ghosts suddenly appeared around him. The dragon tried to snap at them, but its teeth faded through the ghosts.

Wu tried to use his staff to hit the ghosts circling around him, but the ghosts continued to reach him, ignoring the staff poking through their chests.

One with an arrow on his back caught the staff and flipped it back, sending Wu off the dragon. The ghost turned to the others as the dragon went to help Wu.

"We have what we need. Let's leave before the others give us trouble."

The ghosts nodded and started to disappear.

"No!" Wu tried to reach the ghost with an arrow on his back, but he disappeared just as his hand went through him.

Falling back Wu panted heavily. He looked around frantically and froze, seeing one of the ghosts near a food stand, searching through the food angrily.

Wu's eyes narrowed.

* * *

Zane ran to the others as Morro continued his speech. Reaching Kai he panted, pointing back to an alleyway. "I apologize for running off and believing that I could stop the building from falling. My actions were completely uncalled for. But right now we must focus on Sensei. I saw him make his way down that alleyway, chasing a ghost. I fear that he may be putting himself in a dangerous position."

The ninja slipped into the alleyway just as Morro was beginning to finish his speech. He gave them a smile before they disappeared around the corner. They followed Zane through a series of passages before they found Wu running after a ghost. Although Wu was trying to keep up his stamina, it was obvious that he was having difficulty running after him. The ghost gave him a goofy grin before he noticed the ninja behind him. He jumped and started to fly faster, his arms flailing around him.

Pulling his hat down protectively the ghost took a sharp turn. "I came all this way to do Morro's job and I didn't even get one puffy pot sticker! Not even one for Ghoultar's stomach!"

Wu turned to the others. "Quickly! This our chance to find what their weakness is! Throw anything that you think might work!"

A rubber duck shot through the ghost, causing Ghoultar to stop. "Huh?"

Cole turned to Jay. "Really, a rubber duck?"

Jay threw up his hands. "He said throw anything!"

"Maybe we can try electricity?" Zane proposed. "If I get close enough I can try to short circuit him."

"Well, not that we have any other leads," Kai said. "I'll distract him. Hey, Ghoultar, is this what you're looking for?"

Ghoultar stopped and turned around cautiously. "Do…do you have puffy pot stickers?"

Putting his hands behind his back Kai walked backwards.

"You'll have to come here to get it…"

As Ghoultar lunged forward Kai ducked. "Now!"

Zane flipped over Ghoultar, putting his hand over the ghost as a small band of electricity shot out. After landing Zane turned, only to see that it had gone through him.

"You lie!" Ghoultar thundered, pointing at Kai. "Ghoultar make red ninja pay!"

Ghoultar sped forward, ignoring the items hitting him, aiming himself at Kai.

Nya's eyes widened. For a second she could see the ghost fading into her brother and Kai's eyes lighting up with a green glow…

Nya stretched out her hand. "No!"

Just before Ghoultar reached Kai Nya felt drops of water hit her hand. Nya looked up at the once clear sky in bewilderment. "It's…raining?"

Ghoultar pulled his hat down, trying to protect himself from the rain, but the drops started to form gaping holes in his body. He shrieked as each one hit him, a small burst of steam rising off from each new hole.

"Rain?" Zane questioned. "But there was only a five percent chance for rain, and that wasn't until this evening."

Jay clapped Zane's shoulders and steered him to look at Ghoultar. "Who cares? We found out their weakness! Now we can actually attack them instead of having our attacks go through them!"

After Ghoultar gave one final wail he disappeared, only leaving the falling rain in his place. After a moment of silence the ninja broke into cheers, high-fiving one another and patting each other's backs. Kai groaned, pressing himself along the edge of the building to try to avoid the rain.

Nya watched their excitement with only some awareness. She let her gaze fall down. As the rain curled into her yellow hands she looked up at the sky, watching the drops fall.


	3. The Samurai and the City on Water

Chapter 3: The Samurai and the City on Water

 **Wow, this one is on the longer side. I'm not sure if I'll be able to post every week-I'm going to be pretty busy this month. But I'll make sure to post once every two weeks.**

 **I just want to thank everyone for supporting this story. My schoolwork has been heavy this year, and working on this story has given me an outlet of sorts. Getting notifications of people favoriting or following on my phone helps to push me through. It never fails to put a smile on my face.**

 **Morro and More: Ah, thank you!**

 **RandomDragon2.0: I always love seeing your reviews and your reactions to different parts. I'm glad you enjoyed the last chapter!**

 **Wyrenfire: Thank you!**

 **NinjagoMLP77: I'm glad that you liked the idea with Morro pretending to be Lloyd. I couldn't shake off the idea when I first saw Possession-I guess I just found it weird that Morro wouldn't take advantage of it when everyone thinks he is Lloyd initially.**

 **Steampunk Wilson: I actually plan on having the next chapter being dedicated to Lloyd's point of view. I've actually always wanted to reply to reviews for a multi-chapter fanfiction, so I'm glad that you enjoy these little sections. I wasn't really sure if anyone bothered to read them.**

 **PrairieSkies and Star: Thank you both for your reviews!**

 **StoriesAreMagic: I love you structure your reviews, you always manage to make me smile. I almost sometimes forget what I exactly wrote, so it's cool seeing how you quote parts of the story.**

"I believe that your words yesterday were that you caused the rain to fall before Ghoultar could possess your brother," Wu said, lifting water from the stream in his hands before letting it fall back down.

Nya had confessed to Wu on the night of their victory that she felt that she had created the rain. Wu had listened to her thoughtfully, nodding as she described the feeling before they had settled in for the night. Nya didn't expect Wu to wake her early the following morning. Truthfully, she wasn't that excited to test her powers in the first place. As the minutes grew into hours she started to lose her patience, getting frustrated as her attempts drew no results.

"Maybe I was wrong," Nya said, kicking the water. "I've never had powers before-why would they activate now?"

Wu held out his hand to the small waterfall. "I never doubted that you were a strong warrior. However, sometimes elemental masters are unable to pass their powers to their children. But now that we have determined that you have your mother's powers we must take advantage of them to target the ghost's weakness."

"But I'm not my mother," Nya huffed. "I'm Samurai X. I don't want to follow some other role predetermined for me. I'm sure that we can find some other way to carry water with us."

"Unfortunately, we cannot take that risk. If we carried our own water we would have to find ways to refill it. What would we do if a ghost came at us and we were unprepared?" Wu let Nya ponder the question as he sat up, using a wooden staff. As she stared at her reflection in the water Wu walked to the stream's side. "I must go with the other ninja to find ways to stop Morro. For now, Misako will help you with your training. I'm sure that her patience will help you to build yours."

As Wu entered Steep Wisdom through the back door Nya groaned, crouching down in the water. She swept her hand through the water, trying to make sense of the patterns that it created. "Why do I always have to stay behind?"

Wu entered the shop and looked over the ninja. "Where is Jay? I believe that I asked all of you to come."

The front door flew open, some of the shelves rattling as it slammed shut. Jay ran forward, panting, before slamming a newspaper article on the counter.

"Can you believe what they're saying? How can they even say some of this stuff when they haven't even talked to us about it-"

Cole raised his hands. "Hold on there motormouth. We can't tell what you're saying when you're talking so fast. Start from the beginning."

Jay took a few moments to collect his breath. "Okay, so I went to town since we needed some parts for the Bounty since it's been in repair, and everywhere I looked I saw these magazines. Lloyd this, ghosts that. It's all anyone was talking about."

Kai's brow furrowed as he read through it. "'The Green Ninja Saves the Day; Others Stand Back. A Split from the Team?'"

Jay sighed, sitting at the counter, rubbing his eyes. "I'm already sick of this. I just want our friend back…"

Wu took the paper, and after reading through it, he threw it into the trashcan at the counter's side. The trashcan rattled. "Luckily, we will not be going to New Ninjago City today. We won't have to worry about the media in Stiix."

"Stiix City?" Zane asked. "Isn't that a dock city?"

"In some ways you are correct. The city is built completely on the docks. There are two benefits to going there, the first being that Morro won't be able in intercept us there and the second being that I have heard rumors of there being a shopkeeper that sells aeroblades and deepstone armor. These will be essential in our fight to stop Morro."

"I've been meaning to ask this Sensei, but why did the ghosts steal your staff?" Cole asked, looking to the others. "I understand pretending to be the hero, but I can't see what Morro would want with a bamboo staff."

Wu looked at the wooden staff and tightened his grip. "It used to be…my father's staff. Aside from sentimental value my father left a clue somewhere on the staff as to where his burial place would be. I tried for years, but…" Wu sighed and ran his hand through his beard. "I was never able to find it. If Morro has the staff I'm positive that finding the tomb is also one of the goals in his plan."

Seeing Wu's expression Cole tried to change the subject. "Let's just focus on what we know for now. Getting the aeroblades and deepstone armor is our first step, but getting to Stix is going to be a challenge. We don't have our vehicles right now. And unless anyone wants to swim there we'll have to come up with something else."

"We could use Nya's exo-suit again." Kai shrugged. "She's not using it right now anyway."

Wu shook his head. "Nya is training to master a new power. The last thing on her mind should be her role as Samurai X. So, regarding your question Cole, I have prepared busfare and another sum of money to use for a ferryboat ride!"

The ninja groaned as Wu handed the coins to Cole.

* * *

Despite Stiix's City size there was a large number of people, both on the docks in the search for the best deals and on the ships coming into port. The ninja looked over the city as the ferryboat came to the dock. The ferryboat captain grumbled, shutting off the engine and jumping off the deck.

"I never thought I'd see the day when the ninja came to Stiix. New Ninjago City isn't enough for you, isn't it?"

The ninja exchanged nervous glances until the captain continued. "Now you need to show off your powers to Stiix. Let me tell you now though-Stiix folks are different than those other cities. It takes more than fancy fruit colors to impress us."

"We're just sight-seeing. Since nothing big has happened in New Ninjago City lately." Kai laughed nervously, looking at the others.

Zane had a blank stare. "What fruit is silver? Wouldn't that be difficult to eat? The only thing that matches your description related to food in some capacity is cavities, in which case isn't considered a fruit," Zane said. Jay snorted.

The driver looked at Zane blankly before shaking his head and returning to the ferry.

The ninja gave a sigh of relief.

Wu looked around, trying to see past the swarm of people, but eventually gave up, shaking his head. "We don't have the time to search through this crowd for the store. Jay, I want you to go with Cole to look north. Kai and Zane will go south. I will stay here and see if I can get some directions from the locals."

Nodding the ninja broke into their pairs and started to search the dock city. After walking with Kai for a stretch of the street Zane noticed a couple talking in front of a store. He walked up to the woman, not noticing how the couple stopped talking.

"Excuse me, but do you about a shop that sells aeroblades and deepstone armor? We are trying to find it for an important mission, so if you don't know it would helpful if you could direct us to someone else."

The woman didn't say anything for a moment. She slowly reached for her boyfriend's hand and eventually looked up to see Zane's smile.

"Why are you…so shiny?"

Zane looked around uncomfortably. "W-well, that accounts for the fact that I am a robot. I used to look human, but after an accident I'd rather not talk about my appearance has become more noticeable."

"A robot?" The man said gruffly. "Look, here in Stiix we don't like to deal with all of that new stuff in New Ninjago City. You're scaring my girlfriend. Get lost before I have to make you."

"Hey," Kai growled, grabbing the man's shirt, pulling him in. "I don't care if you're not used to technology. That doesn't give you a right to act like a jerk towards my friend."

The woman pulled her boyfriend back and scowled. "He's just a robot, isn't he? It's not like he can get hurt over it."

Kai looked ready to punch both of them. Before he could make a move Zane gently pulled him back. "Let's just look somewhere else Kai," Zane said, steering Kai away.

"Why would you let them say that about you?" Kai hissed, causing a few passer-byers to look at him. "After everything that's happened with the Overlord-"

"Exactly. They have no right to treat me that way," Zane interrupted. "But, considering Stiix's remoteness from modern life, I doubt that they are aware that my appearance had to be altered after my sacrifice. To be honest, it was easier before. People treated me normally when I looked normal."

"Do you sometimes…wish you were human? We all thought you were before we found your father's blueprints."

Zane looked down and Kai didn't press any further. They focused on weaving their way through the crowd, looking for a storefront that fit Wu's description before Zane stopped.

"I was horrified when I first found out. But I have come to accept it. I just wish that others would do the same."

As Kai reached to put his hand on Zane's shoulder Cole and Jay ran up to them.

Cole pointed behind him. "We found it! Based on how the place looked the shopkeeper might know a few things that can help us defeat the ghosts."

Following Cole they came to a shop at the very end of the street. While it looked similar to others they could see weapons and other antiques in the window.

Jay creaked open the door. "Uh, hello?" They walked forward before Jay laughed. "Huh, I guess they're not here. Wait, is that a stone warrior helmet?"

Jay went to touch the stone warrior helmet when a man with a red hat and auburn hair popped up, causing Jay to screech and jump back.

"No touching the merchandise without a purchase," The man said, motioning to a sign on the wall. "Can't let anything get broken because of a few clumsy customers. That's why I have a few surprises set."

Kai leaned against a stand. "What do you mean by-"

A switch activated and a punching glove shot out. Kai grabbed his stomach and moaned.

"Name's Ronin," The man said, shaking hands with Cole. "What can I do for you?"

"You're Ronin?" Cole asked, bewildered. "Ninjago's most famous thief?" Cole's gaze narrowed as he looked at the items displayed on the shelves. "Let me guess, half of the stuff here doesn't belong to you."

Ronin shrugged as Cole looked through the items set on the shelves. "Hey, I'm just selling items to other people. It's not like I'm hurting anyone by it."

Cole gasped as he lifted up the fangblade cup from the shelf. "My father's blade cup!"

Jay stepped in front of Cole as he stared at Ronin harshly. "Ignore my friend. We were just wondering if you had any sets of deepstone armor or aeroblades."

Ronin clicked his tongue. "That's going to be quite the bill. How much do you have on you?"

"Sensei has our money right now," Zane said as he looked up. "But…I believe we have around two hundred."

"Hmm…" Ronin drawled. "Tell you what, I'll give you one armor piece for that price."

"One armor piece?" Kai snapped. "We need one for all of us!"

"Well, I can't do anything about that. I run a tight business. This stuff's not easy to get your hands on."

"What if I tell you it's for the safety of Ninjago?" Kai said.

"I wouldn't care if you told me that it was for preventing the Overlord's return."

Zane narrowed his gaze. "I have to side with Cole with this. How exactly did you obtain all of these antiques? Is it that it costed you a lot to purchase them? Is that why the price is so high? Or is there another reason?"

As the four stared at him Ronin quickly pushed them back to the door. "Can't say," Ronin said. "But if you aren't willing to compromise, I'll have to ask you to leave."

The door closed on them and Cole pounded on it.

He sighed and shook his head. "No good. It won't budge."

"There was something off about that place," Kai said as they walked to the dock's center. "If we had more time I wouldn't hesitate to make sure he gets what he deserves."

"Let's just go to Sensei and get the money," Zane said. "Then we can hopefully bargain for two armor pieces."

"For what?" Jay said. "There's no way that we can keep exchanging them in battle."

"Actually, I was more along the lines of…other methods. While it runs against my moral compass, we will have to steal the rest. It's not just for our safety. He will hopefully understand in the long run."

* * *

"Your anger is holding you back," Misako said as she sat at the edge of the garden.

Nya groaned. Although Wu's philosophical advice could be annoying at times Misako's calm and persistent tone was grating on her. She took another deep breath and tried to lift the water.

"I managed to control one drop before," Nya said, closing her eyes.

"Clear your mind from distractions."

Nya clenched her teeth. "That's what I'm doing."

Misako shook her head. "Like your brother, you are impatient. You are just better at hiding it. Water is different than fire. It requires the user to have a patient and calm state of mind. It must flow naturally."

Raising her hands Nya tried to lift water from the stream. The water rose feebly. Nya smiled, but as she lifted her hands further the water sagged down before splashing back into the stream.

"Maybe we should take a break," Misako said uncertainly. "If you like we can go to town and do some shopping. It will clear your head."

"We don't have time!" Nya groaned. The frustration she felt while training started to bubble out. "I need to save Lloyd instead of standing here acting like your replacement for him!"

Misako's comforting gaze faded. "Is that why you think I'm helping you train?"

"Well, you don't exactly have powers," Nya said quickly. She winced as soon as she realized what she said.

Misako's face returned as she sat up. "I may not have powers, but I hold a skill more valuable that Wu was trying to teach you. I have made mistakes in the past for not being there for my son. But I'm not going to act rashly in trying to get him back. There is virtue in patience."

With that Misako walked into the shop. Nya sighed and sat down onto one of the rocks in the water.

"I just want to help, but I feel so powerless. I don't have time to train."

Nya looked up from her reflection. "I can train later. For now, Samurai X isn't going to just sit around."

* * *

Nya piloted her exo-suit over Stiix. She had tried to spot the ninja, but the crowd was too large for her to find them. Sighing, she started to circle around when she saw a suspicious man climbing a person's chimney.

Nya grinned, propelling her suit to land at the house, ignoring the stares people sent her. If anything, she needed a distraction right now and it wouldn't take too long anyway. She flicked her voice modifier on before grabbing onto the house's side.

The man entered through the chimney. After a moment Nya did the same and found herself in a spacious living room adorned with antiques.

The man crept forward to the couch and peeked across the corner. After making sure that no one was there he scurried forward and starting to lift a vase from the side-table.

Nya ran forward. "Hey!"

The man widened his eyes and set the vase under his arm. As Nya ran to him he held himself up with the couch and tried to kick Nya's legs under. Nya jumped over his legs and threw a punch, which he dodged by bending over to the side.

"Give me the vase." With her voice modifier on the threat was intimidating.

The man just smirked, holding up the vase as if he were examining it. "And why should I? There aren't that many ancient vases around anymore. I can make quite a tidy profit on this one."

Nya paused, dumbfounded at his honesty. The man took advantage of it and swung over the couch with his free hand, sliding to the chimney.

"It's been fun, but I have to get going. I'll see you around another time." Saluting, he tipped his hat and went up the chimney.

"Oh, I'm not giving up yet." Nya tried to follow him but peering up she saw that he had covered the chimney's entrance with a sack.

Groaning she slid back down and ran out the door, just in time to see the man enter a shop.

"Now that gives me an idea. Too bad you revealed your location thief."

* * *

With her suit off Nya entered the shop. She walked in casually to look at the same vase propped up on a stand.

"How much does this vase go for?"

The man lifted his gaze from the counter. "Ah, you've got quite the eye miss. That's an ancient Stone Warrior vase." The man offered his hand. "The name's Ronin. We don't have to deal with formalities."

"Really Ronin?" Nya said, leaning over the counter. "Because I thought I saw that vase earlier from that house you just stole it from."

Ronin dropped the cloth he was holding. "That-that was you?"

Nya propped her arms over the counter. "Does it surprise you that a girl figured out your secret?"

"And why don't we keep it that way?" Ronin said hurriedly. "I'll let you take the vase and we won't have to talk about this again."

Nya grew a shade of red. "I don't care about the vase! What I care about is that you are stealing from people and selling it right under their noses!"

Ronin's eyes widened. He smirked. "You know, I like a feisty woman."

"Don't you dare flatter me!"

"You came here for something," Ronin crossed his arms. "Everyone has their own motivation."

Nya huffed. "We won't talk about this if you give me six sets of deepstone armor and aeroblades."

Ronin cocked his head. "How much do you have?"

Nya glared.

"Fine, fine. I'll give you the armor and aeroblades. Are you happy?"

"You seemed awfully protective over that vase. Is there something you're hiding?"

Ronin held up his arms and Nya looked into the vase. "Hey, don't go near-"

"A…scroll? What's this for?" Nya asked. She started to open the scroll when the door opened. She dropped it back into the vase and put her hands behind her back as Wu and the ninja filed in.

Ronin quickly grabbed the vase and put it on the counter.

"Nya? What are you doing here?" Wu asked. "I thought that you were training with Misako."

Seeing Nya's expression Ronin smirked. "So, went against orders, did you? And here you are, acting like I'm the bad guy."

Nya looked down. Jay put his hand on her shoulder.

Jay tried to change the subject. "How did you get here? You aren't in your Samurai X outfit."

"Oh, I just left it outside," Nya said. "I changed before I came in."

"Really? We didn't see it before we came in here."

"You should have seen it, I put it right-" Nya's eyes widened and she ran out of the shop. The others followed to find her looking at a house. She looked around frantically, her gaze eventually settling on the alleyway.

"There! The ghosts from yesterday have it!"

Hearing her Bansha stopped dragging the suit and turned to Soul Archer. "Hurry! The girl spotted us."

Wu held Nya back as the other ninja ran forward. "Nya," He huffed. "You must be willing to let go of the past if we are to save Ninjago."

"But-" Nya wavered as the ghosts took the corner.

Bansha turned to Soul Archer. "Make sure that they don't follow us. I need to get this mech back to the base without any unnecessary distractions."

Nodding, Soul Archer lifted his bow. An arrow flew at the ninja. The ninja jumped into battle stances, dodging the arrow which pierced the building behind them, leaving the building to slowly turn green.

"Those weapons would be pretty nice right now," Kai said as he dodged an arrow aimed at his chest.

"Well," Ronin puffed, running forward, his arms overflowing with aeroblades. "Consider yourselves lucky. Take them before I change my mind." Ronin wiped as he brow as the ninja eagerly grabbed the aeroblades.

"Sweet!" Jay said, lifting his up.

Cole grabbed the black one with a yellow center and blocked an arrow. "Six against two ghosts with working weapons. Now that's something that I can agree too."

"Ninjago!"

As they ran after Soul Archer Cole turned to his teammates. "Jay, you stay with Kai to take care of this guy. Zane and I will figure out a way to make the ghost drop the mech."

Jay groaned. "Can't I go get the suit?"

As the ninja stared at him in confusion Jay laughed nervously. "I mean, I don't want Nya to think I don't care if I don't help out, you know?"

Cole sighed, frustrated. "Nya knows you care even if you don't get her Samurai suit directly, okay? Zane and I are going after the mech."

Jay stopped running. He looked ready to protest, but another arrow sped towards them, making him scream.

Kai jumped in front of him and used his aeroblade to block it. "Try to pay more attention, will you?"

Cole and Zane ran forward, following Bansha who was dragging the mech with her as she turned through Stiix's streets.

"Do you remember what Sensei said earlier? Due to Stiix's location we can use the water to our advantage," Zane said. "That being the case, I'll focus on getting in her into the water while you distract her."

"Good thinking," Cole said, being slightly taken aback.

'You're only the leader temporarily,' He reminded himself. 'Once we get a hold of that scumbag Morro Lloyd can lead the team again.'

Cole waved his aeroblade, climbing onto the roof. "You might want to watch your back," He said, leaping across the buildings. "Don't underestimate me. I can still pack a punch without my powers."

Bansha growled and slid into the exo-suit. The dark red faded into a ghostly green as Bansha piloted it to throw Cole back using the suit's arms.

Cole skidded across the roof and held onto the edge to prevent himself from falling off. "Okay," He said, pulling himself back onto the roof. "Don't anger the ghost that has a fully operational mech at their disposal. Be careful Zane."

Zane nodded, running to the mech's legs.

"Pixal, what's-" Seeing the passer-byers he stopped. "Actually, I will handle this myself this time."

Zane ran to up Bansha, but at the last moment skidded into another street.

Bansha slammed the mech's controls and swung the mech around. Her eyes widened, not finding him on the other side.

Before she could turn around Zane kicked her from behind, landing on the mech's shoulder.

Bansha hissed, regaining her seat. "How did you run around so quickly?"

"I merely waited at the corner before turning back," Zane explained, smirking, as he swung at Bansha. "I knew that you wouldn't risk leaving the mech behind."

"Who says that the mech was our objective?"

Zane froze, leaving Bansha time to kick him off. Zane groaned as he fell onto the nearby rooftop. As Bansha swung the mech's arm down Zane tumbled to avoid it and started to run.

Bansha shrieked with laughter. "Fleeing already? Or has the smart ninja run out of plans?"

"On the contrary," Zane said, using the pipeline to slide down the roof. He planted his knees on the dock and held up his aeroblade, tearing it into the dock with all of his strength.

Unaware that the dock was weaker Bansha slammed the mech's leg forward, making the dock bounce.

As the mech shook Zane jumped forward and used his aeroblade to knock Bansha off. Wailing, she plunged into the hole.

Cole jumped down and patted Zane's back. "I knew you could do it you tin can! We better take this back so Nya doesn't badger us about it."

"I'm afraid that we don't have time," Zane said, trying to catch his breath. "Morro is up to something. That was merely a distraction."

Cole's focused expression returned. "Okay people, move out of the way, ninja coming through."

Running through the street Cole and Zane came to the shop, Cole slamming against the door until it burst open. Ronin turned to them, his face covered in sweat as he held off Morro with an aeroblade. "Don't just stand there…do something!"

Morro smirked, cracking his head before sending a blast of wind, knocking the aeroblade out of his hands.

"There's no use in trying to stop me," Morro said as Ronin came in for another attack. Flicking his wrist Morro sent energy towards him, sending Ronin into the counter. "I have the power of the most powerful ninja _and_ the ability to control wind. There's no use in even trying to fight!"

Cole tried to go forward, but Zane held him back.

"Morro's right. We can't just go in recklessly. If I recall correctly, you said so yourself when I ran to that falling building in New Ninjago City."

Cole bit his lip and stood back up. "Then we come up with a plan. If Morro can take on two of us then we'll see how he does with four. I'll stay here and distract him while you get the others."

"Can't there be alternative? Surely there must be some other solution-"

Cole put his hand on Zane's shoulder. "Don't worry, I can handle myself for now. Besides, the sooner you go the less time I have to fight."

Zane stood silently for a few seconds, locking his gaze with Cole before eventually leaving the shop as Cole ran forward.

Morro turned his gaze from Ronin to Cole as he ran up to him, easily catching his hand as Cole tried to throw a punch.

Cole's eyebrows rose in confusion. Taking a breath he used all of his strength to lift Morro up and slam him onto the ground.

Morro hissed, kicking Cole's legs, taking him down with him before jumping on top of him.

"You actually have an admirable level of strength. It's too bad that we're on opposite sides."

"It's too bad that you aren't used to being human for a while," Cole said, smirking.

"What are you-"

Cole punched Morro in the nose and Morro fell back, covering his face as Cole jumped up. Morro followed suit. He wiped his mouth and laughed.

"It doesn't matter. Once I get used to your friend's body I'll be a part of the living. Permanently."

Cole's eyes widened and he cried out as he ran forward. He tried to do a headbutt but Morro caught him and sent him back with a blast of wind.

Cole tried to get up before Morro sent a ball of energy, knocking him down again.

Morro walked forward, his hands lighting with energy. He lifted his hands to strike when the door was thrown open and Kai, Jay, and Zane ran in.

"Don't worry about me," Cole said, looking up. "Focus on Morro-he came here for a reason, and it was more than just focusing on us."

Morro's confidence faded as the three ran to him with fury. He tried to block all of their hits, but soon found it difficult to concentrate as the sensation of pain flooded him, making his vision blurry and his breathing heavy. Gritting his teeth he forced himself up and flipped over the counter.

He searched frantically as the three followed suit.

He yelled, sending the items to the floor and knocked Jay down with a strong punch. "Where is it?!"

Ronin coughed. "Like I'd tell you after destroying half of my shop."

Jay hacked, Zane helping him up. Jay turned to Zane. "What does he mean by it? What is he looking for?"

"It doesn't matter," Kai said, facing Morro as the shop door opened again, Wu and Nya filing in. "You're outnumbered."

"And what are you going to do?" Morro spat. "Hurt your friend? Every punch and kick aimed at me only hurts Lloyd and makes my possession stronger."

Kai faltered, allowing Morro to go forward.

He grabbed Ronin and leaned into his face. "Have you already forgotten your debt so soon?" Morro smirked when Ronin didn't respond. "Now that the ninja are all here Soul Archer can come by to say hello."

Morro let go of Ronin, causing him to fall back. With a pop Soul Archer appeared in front of him.

Soul Archer laughed as he pointed the tip of his arrow on Ronin's forehead. "I wonder…is it better to help them now or live in the Cursed Realm for the rest of eternity?"

Nya slid forward to grab Ronin's aeroblade and threw Soul Archer off with a strong hit. Soul Archer's arrow hit the ceiling and floor, going back and forth between the walls.

"What is he talking about?" Nya panted, blocking the arrow as Soul Archer threw himself on her. "Ronin!"

Ronin crawled forward to the counter and reached up to grab the vase. "Sorry Nya, but a deal's a deal." With a sigh he allowed Morro to rip the vase from his hands.

Morro smirked, pulling up the scroll. "Hidden in plain sight. Clever."

Wu gasped. "The scroll of airjitzu. So that's what you're after."

Kai turned on Ronin. "So now you're helping Morro and his ghosts get want they want? You're nothing but a thief that acts in your own interests!"

"Don't forgot our deal Ronin," Morro said. "I don't think that Soul Archer will like it if I tell him that you didn't follow through on your words."

Ronin deflated, seeing Nya. "I-I didn't have a choice. I can't let my soul be taken to the Cursed Realm! You'd do the same if you were in my position."

Nya crossed her arms. "And give the enemy the chance to win? Why didn't you tell us that Morro was threatening you? We could have helped you! But no, you don't think about anyone but yourself, do you?"

Ronin fell back as Nya advanced. "W-well, I-"

The shop suddenly shook as the roof ripped open, the Samurai mech's arm pulling out planks of wood.

"Sorry, but that's my ride," Morro said. Reading the scroll he spiraled into a green vortex and landed on the mech's waiting hand. "Even with six against one you still can't beat me." Morro looked at Wu. "What a pathetic display of power. I would have thought that you of all people would have trained your students with skill. But I guess the mind deteriorates with age, doesn't it Wu?"

"Enjoy your victory for now," Wu said. "But know this: my students will stop you. One cannot last long against a team. That was your downfall then, and it will be the same fate that you'll face later."

Morro laughed. "Haven't you already realized it Wu? The student has surpassed the teacher. Let's get out of here."

Bansha cranked a lever and the mech lifted off, sending down debris.

Jay coughed, trying to move the dust away with his hand. "What just happened? How did he fly away in that green vortex?"

Wu stared at the opening before shaking his head and returning his attention to his students. "Airjitzu must have been one of the clues on my father's staff. It is a powerful martial arts form that enables the user to fly. Morro will be more difficult to stop now that he possesses that ability. Wu closed his eyes and sighed before returning his gaze. "I know that this goes without saying, but I want to let you know that I still consider you my as true students. Although Morro was my previous student, there is no justification for his behavior. I apologize if my behavior in these past few days has been erratic. It's just that I was desperate to erase my past mistakes and in the process I created countless more."

Zane smiled. "We are still your students Sensei, no matter what you do. Just as you help us through difficult times, we will not hesitate to help you."

"Tell us next time if you need help," Kai said, resting his hand on Wu's shoulder. "For now, we'll all work together to stop Morro. We'll learn airjitzu if that's what it takes to stop him."

As the ninja circled around their Sensei Nya looked up to see Ronin slink out of the shop. Shaking her head she returned to Wu.

"I…also have something I need to say. I know that I was forceful about not wanting to be the water ninja. But I'm not solving anything by refusing it. Samurai X isn't going to help in this situation." Nya looked at her hands. "If my mom really had water powers I know that she would have done anything to help others. So I'm ready to start training. I'm not throwing away my identity by becoming the water ninja-I'm just strengthening my old one."

Wu smiled and locked his gaze with all of his students. "We still have the ability to defeat Morro and rescue my nephew. It will be difficult, but by supporting one another we have the potential to do it. There is another way we can learn airjitzu to beat Morro at his own game. By doing so, we will put ourselves in a better positon."

Wu pointed his wooden staff at them. "Rest tonight. We will have to be ready in the morning to be at our best game."


	4. Through the Looking Glass

Chapter 4: Through the Looking Glass

 **This one was a bit harder for me to write, but I'm pretty happy with how it turned out. I'm not sure if Morro really has an explicit backstory, so I kind of just had to write what I felt explained his character the most.**

 **I was kind of lazy with deciding what his father's name would have been, so I'm interested to see if anyone can pick up on it.**

 **Steampunk** **Wilson: Stiix is definitely robophobic. I'm glad that you enjoy my fighting scenes-it actually takes me a while to revise them. My rough drafts of fighting scenes aren't much more than "he threw a punch" or "she dodged." I really like to respond to reviews, so I'm always happy to see your reaction to a chapter!**

 **RandomDragon2.0: It's bad, but I had way too much fun writing that scene where Kai gets punched in the stomach. Also, my main goal in having Nya accept her position early on is so that she can have more time building her role on the team. So, there's that to look forward to!**

 **StoriesAreMagic: I feel like my favorite scenes with Wu aren't when he's being serious, but when he gets excited over random things. One of my favorites is in Twice Bitten, Once Shy when he yells "Ferris wheel!" and runs towards it. And yes, Zane will definitely have more of an arc because of the incident with the Stiix couple. I always found it irritating how the writers made Zane break down instead of bothering to write his character, especially in Possession. I also loved writing the scene with Misako and Nya. In a lot of the seasons I feel like Misako is just...there. She doesn't really make an effort to talk with the others on the team aside from Lloyd.**

 **PrairieSkies: It actually took me a while to warm up to Ronin, but I absolutely love writing him now. It's nice to balance it out and have a blunt, sort of jerk character instead of having to write everyone being 100% good all the time. I'm really glad that you liked the Cole scene-I wanted to show that he really looks out for everyone.**

Bansha and Soul Archer looked on uncomfortably as Morro tapped his hand. The room was dark, with only one candle in the center, masking their location.

Morro fiddled with the staff. As he had hoped, the staff had contained the three clues needed to get into the First Spinjitzu's Master's tomb. The first clue had been easy enough to interpret-he remembered Wu giving a lecture on it while he was at the monastery. But the second clue…

Morro pounded his hand on the armrest, causing the candle light to flicker. Bansha and Soul Archer flinched at his movement.

"What am I supposed to do with a picture of a sword in the clouds?" Morro held up the parchment that they had used to imprint the staff's messages on in their faces. "Is he trying to mock me?"

"Perhaps I can take a look," Bansha offered. She took the paper silently and studied it before laughing.

"What is it?" Morro asked impatiently, leaning forward.

Bansha held up the paper. "I lived in a small village on the mountains in my living years. The Wailing Alps, otherwise known as the highest peak in Ninjago. Every so often a portal would appear above us, permitting entry to the Cloud Kingdom. I know the territory in and out. It will give us a massive advantage."

"Cloud Kingdom…" Morro mused. "That's one of the Sixteen Realms."

Soul Archer's eyes flashed. "Not just any realm. I've heard that they hold a relic there on one of my trading routes. The sword is only heard of in legends, but those who possess it gain great power and status."

Morro smiled, easing back into his chair. The flame on the candle came to a place of stillness. "Gather everyone to prepare for a trip to the Wailing Alps. In the meantime I'll go to another village to secure my reputation as the Green Ninja. Executing the plan will be no problem from this point forward-Lloyd hasn't resisted my possession and the citizens are in a false sense of security."

* * *

Lloyd was in darkness. The only hints of the outside world came from Morro's voice overhead and the faint sound of the other warrior's comments. It seemed like they were preparing for something-he could hear the sound of things being packed and ghosts moving around. He waited for Morro to talk again, hugging his knees into his chest. Strangely enough, the worst part of the possession wasn't Morro talking to the citizens and acting like him, but the stretches of time when Morro wasn't doing _anything_. He would sometimes go for hours without any kind of sound in the blackness, mainly when Morro was sleeping or on some kind of mission and the emptiness would slowly start to creep into his mind.

Sometimes it would be enough to threaten him to give up. It seemed so much easier to just let Morro take control. The faces of his friends were fading and sometimes he forgot that this wasn't how always was and that he was Lloyd and that he was the one that was supposed to be in control.

The only thing that could drag him out of these thoughts was the sound of his friend's voices. When Morro confronted the ninja and the ninja responded, saying that they'll manage to free him Lloyd remembers who he is and wills himself to cling on. Just for a little longer and maybe they'll come.

Lloyd tries to put their names to memory. He doesn't want to forget them.

Mom…

Uncle Wu…

Cole…

Jay…

Zane…

Nya…

Kai…

Shame fills him as he remembers how Kai had tried to save him. But the feeling slowly turns to anger-why was Morro doing this?

Lloyd closed his eyes and tried to understand the master of wind's goal. Was he doing this for glory? To be the green ninja he always wanted to be?

Suddenly, a creak echoed in the darkness and Lloyd almost fell back. Opening his eyes he saw a large wooden door in front of him.

Lloyd regained his balance and rubbed his eyes. The door was still there.

Faintly, he could hear voices from the other side. Looking back to make sure that Morro wasn't watching Lloyd put his hand on the door.

The door opened and light burst through. Before he could pull back he felt himself being pulled into the light. He closed his eyes as he fell down for what seemed to be forever until Lloyd finally landed on the ground.

He slowly opened his eyes and found the sun basking over him. He felt his hand over the grass before inhaling deeply.

"I…I can talk," Lloyd said looking at his hands. "It almost feels like I have my body again…" Lloyd stood up and found that he was in a village with several homes lining the streets. Although the buildings were unfamiliar the land was unmistakably the same as New Ninjago City.

Watching the citizens walk and act normal made him shake his head. "This must be some sort of cruel joke by Morro."

"Hey, kid!"

Lloyd turned to see a shopkeeper walk to him, holding up a rolling pin. Lloyd raised his hands.

"Um, you're coming a little too-"

The shopkeeper didn't run into him, but instead, walked _through_ him. Lloyd grabbed his stomach as the shopkeeper walked out and grabbed a boy's shoulder.

The boy turned around and Lloyd gasped. It was Morro, but at a younger age. Lloyd didn't want to admit it, but he looked so innocent. It was hard to see that he was the same person.

"Did you think that you'd get away with it?" The shopkeeper said gruffly. "I saw you take some of my apples."

"I-I don't know what you're talking about sir…"

"Open your bag. Let's see if that shows the truth more than that mouth of yours."

Morro's lip wobbled and Lloyd walked forward. Although he knew that the shopkeeper probably wouldn't hear him he felt compelled to help him.

"Hey, he's just a kid. I can pay for it if-"

"What do you think you're doing?" The shopkeeper interrupted, turning back to his cart where a girl was grabbing an apple. "Think that you could get away with it when I turned my back, huh?"

Morro scurried away as the shopkeeper turned. Lloyd turned from the scene and called after him. "Wait! Morro!"

Lloyd followed him into the alleyway until Morro came to a stop. Tucked between the two buildings there were a series of makeshift tents and other supplies littering the ground. Dozens of kids swarmed the area, playing games and digging through the garbage cans at the building's sides. An older kid sat on a garbage can, watching the others dig through. He looked up to see Morro run towards him and a smile crept onto his face. Lloyd felt a chill come over him as the kid opened his arms invitingly.

"Morro, I knew that I'd be expecting you soon. Let's see what we have here," He said, taking Morro's sack. He gestured to the kids at the garbage can. "They've been looking all morning but they haven't gotten anything to show for it. Let's see how you did."

"I managed to get some food," Morro explained as the leader opened the bag. "I know it's not much but-"

"You brought apples?"

The other kids in the group stopped what they were doing and echoed in laughter with the boy. His expression shifted to malice as he grabbed Morro's collar and pulled him into his face.

"I thought that were clear in our deal Morro. You get to join the Lost Boys if you do our scrub work. This," the boy said lazily, throwing the sack on the ground and crushing one of the apples with his foot, "Doesn't cut it."

"But I have nowhere else to go Leo," Morro pleaded. "Ever since dad died mom doesn't want to go to work anymore. I'm always so hungry-"

"We're all hungry Morro," Leo said. "Don't try to act like you have it any worse than us. Just for that you're getting a special job. I want you to get food from that monastery on the mountain tomorrow. The good stuff." Leo dropped Morro onto the ground. "Oh, and this time, don't bother on bringing any apples."

The Lost Boys laughed as Morro grabbed his bag and sat next to them at one of the fire pits. He shivered and tried to get closer, but the boy next to him shoved him off the log.

Morro crossed his arms as he stared up at the night sky. "Don't worry dad, I'll get food tomorrow…They won't know what hit them when I come back with more food than any of those idiots can find."

Slurring more stories to his father Morro eventually closed his eyes and rolled over onto a thin blanket.

Suddenly the night started to fade into daytime. The tents and fire pits disappeared and were replaced by a monastery overlooking Ninjago from its position on a mountain, with several hundred steps leading up to its doors.

Lloyd turned to find Morro and three other scrawny kids from the Lost Boys digging through the trashcan at the monastery's sides.

Lloyd breathed in wonder, remembering how the monastery had looked when he and Kai had gone. "It's almost a completely different place." Lloyd reached for the door, but fell back as a young man opened the door.

Lloyd grabbed his head and looked up. The man had light, short brown hair. But letting his eyes trail down Lloyd recognized the robes that the man wore and his eyes widened, realization dawning on his face. "U-uncle Wu?"

Seeing Wu at the door the Lost Boys scrambled to take a heap of garbage and started to run down the stairs. As one of the boys turned his bag hit Morro, knocking him into the garbage, before he scrambled to follow the others.

Morro hissed and pried his face out of the garbage, but his eyes grew at seeing Wu look at him. They continued to stare at one another until Wu offered his hand to Morro.

"Don't worry, I won't hurt you. And you don't have to look in the garbage for food. I would be more than willing to give some to you if you had only asked-"

Morro quickly dug himself out of the garbage and scurried down the stairs, ignoring Wu calling after him.

The scene faded into early spring. Admiring the cherry blossoms Wu hummed before setting a dish of food down at the monastery's steps. Wu paused, hearing footsteps, and hid himself behind one of the monastery's open doors when Morro came into sight.

Morro's stomach growled as soon as he landed his gaze on the food. He made sure that no one was watching before he hesitantly grabbed the dish. Before he knew it he was hurriedly digging into it and licking off the last crumbs.

"What am I doing?" Morro hissed, putting the dish down. "I don't have to take his pity."

Haughtily Morro ran down the steps. Wu peered out, grabbing the empty dish.

The same event happened the following days. The memories started to blur as they flashed by rapidly, making Lloyd's head hurt, but he tried his best to focus. He saw Morro taking the dish and grumbling, saying that the wouldn't take the dish the next day or that he would give to Leo, but eventually Morro started to take the hand-outs without a word, always heaving them down in fear that they wouldn't be there the next day.

The memories came to a halt and Lloyd grabbed his head to collect himself. Wearily he saw Morro walk up the monastery steps, but cower back at seeing the monastery doors open.

Morro looked around hesitantly before entering. Lloyd struggled to keep his balance as he followed Morro into the training area placed in the center ring of the monastery.

"You must keep your balance when fighting," Wu said, helping a student up before directing his attention to the other students. "That applies to all of you. You will gain your strength eventually. For now, accept where you are today and take pride in your progress."

Looking past his students Wu saw Morro hovering at the door. Wu smiled at him. "I'm glad you could make it. Everyone, this is your new student. He will be joining us for the remainder of the course."

Morro went to take a step forward, but at seeing Wu's kind expression, he flinched back. He huffed, crossing his arms and leaned back into the doorframe.

"Come," Wu said, ignoring Morro's stubbornness. "You don't want to miss lunch after the lesson, do you?"

Morro's eyes flicked upward. Eventually he joined the wave of students and seeing that they were following Wu's movements he lifted his arm with them and punched the air, giving out a short call.

After a few minutes Morro's movements easily outshined the others in his group, all of his strikes filled with such intensity and energy. Wu found himself stopping with the other students to watch his complete focus on the tasks given to him.

Morro opened his eyes and nearly fell back at seeing the students watching him. Red creeped on his neck and he gave his classmates an angry stare. "What do you think you're looking at?"

"That was excellent…" Wu stuttered before Morro finished his sentence sharply.

"Morro."

Wu gave him a gentle smile. "You'll do well here Morro. You have great potential."

Wu's words continued to echo as the scenes faded to Morro training viciously, striking down dummies with kicks and puffs of wind that shot from his hands. Morro struck down another dummy and smirked, standing over it.

"It seems that your time has come Overlord. Who knew that you'd be so pathetic when I had you down?" Grabbing the dummy Morro threw it across the dojo to a girl's feet.

The girl walked over the dummy and gave Morro a hesitant smile. "You've been out here all day. Don't you want to come in for lunch?"

"Do you think that I have time to waste with you? The green ninja has better things to do with his time," Morro said, returning to his training.

The girl huffed and crossed her arms. "You know Morro, sometimes I think that it'd be better to have the Overlord win rather than you. You've been cocky ever since you got your wind powers and you'd get even worse of an ego after saving the world." The girl's eyes softened as she saw Morro wince, although he tried to hide it. "You used to be so nice when you first came here."

At that moment the door opened and Morro puffed up his chest, fighting off his moment of regret.

"You have improved your power immensely in the past few weeks," Wu said, beckoning his arm forward. "It is time to decide your destiny."

The girl looked at Morro with annoyance and envy before she turned on her heel.

Wu led Morro in, Lloyd jumping in quickly before the door shut.

Morro's eyes widened at seeing the weapons, but he composed himself before walking up to them and closing his eyes.

Lloyd winced, seeing Wu's face fall as the weapons didn't react. "Yea, I thought so…"

Morro opened one eye. "Why isn't it working?"

Wu was silent before he finally responded. "The weapons are never wrong. Perhaps I was…incorrect in my selection."

Morro bent down, staring at the weapons intensely. "I know that I'm the green ninja! Don't just sit there-do something!"

"The weapons would have reacted," Wu said slowly. "But that doesn't mean that you don't have potential."

"I'll prove myself," Morro said, standing up. "I will return when I'm ready and then the weapons will react."

Morro went to walk out the door before Wu grabbed onto his sleeve.

"Morro, I know that I'm sounding harsh right now, but I don't want to give you any false impressions. No matter how hard you train you won't become the green ninja."

Morro's eyes shined with tears before he threw Wu's hand off. "You believed in me when I first came to the monastery. I'm just asking for to you believe in me a little longer. Goodbye Sensei."

As Morro closed the door the world started to fade away into darkness.

Lloyd slowly stood up and looked around. At first he thought that he was in the darkness again until he felt a drop of water fall on his head. Lloyd looked further down the dark cavern and saw the flicker of a campfire.

Morro was leaning over the flames. He was now a teenager, but he still wore the same robes Wu had given him, making them look awkwardly small on his body.

Lloyd saw that he was moving his lips and thought that he was talking to himself until he realized that Morro was looking up to the cave's ceiling.

Although he couldn't see night sky Morro continued to whisper quietly. Lloyd stepped forward and his foot accidentally went through the sack at Morro's side.

Peering into the bag Lloyd saw that it was full of scraps of food and empty water bottles.

"Wu can't ignore me this time dad. Since the grundle didn't work, I'll have to go even bigger...The First Spinjitzu Master's Tomb. They say that the crystal he used to travel across the different realms was buried with his body."

"It took me a while, but I managed to find the right place. The entrance collapsed on me when I came in, but it doesn't matter. As soon as find the crystal I can teleport out of here and go into one of the other realms."

Morro stood up and threw the sack around his shoulder. "I better get going though. I don't have much food left and I ran out of water this morning."

Morro took a piece of wood from the ground and lit it with the campfire. Walking forward to one of the cave's passageways Lloyd suddenly started to have a sinking feeling in his chest.

"Morro, wait."

Lloyd walked forward and tried to grab Morro's shoulder, but his hand simply went through him. Lloyd groaned and followed Morro anxiously, looking around the cave to make sure that nothing dangerous was there.

"Morro…Come on." Lloyd tried to grab Morro again when the light on the torch suddenly went out.

Seeming to come out of his dream-like trance Morro cursed and shook the torch before eventually throwing it down.

"Do you really think a little darkness is going to stop me?" Morro scoffed, looking at the top of the cavern. "I thought that you were the most powerful man in all of Ninjago. Some tomb this turned out to be."

Undeterred, Morro walked forward into the cavern. Lloyd took a step to follow him, but fell back as a geyser of flames shot up and lit the cavern with a shower of sparks.

Morro cursed, but continued forward, jumping to avoid the geysers of the gas.

Powerless to stop him Lloyd hung by the entrance as the cavern continued to light up. He sniffed the air as another geyser shot out gas, and immediately flinched.

"Is this…kethanol? But I thought that kethanol was-"

Morro screamed. A brilliant wall of fire and kethanol burned him. He shook wildly before falling down with a thud on the cavern floor, next to the pool of lava and gas in the middle.

The whole cave shook. Chunks from the ceiling started to fall down, one narrowly crushing Lloyd. Lloyd ran as they started to fall behind him. Behind him he could hear the echoes of voices rumbling through the cavern.

Lloyd slid to a stop as he came to the collapsed entrance.

As a slab fell next to him Lloyd jumped up the wall and started to climb up.

"Morro, I…I never expected you to hold the power of wind," Wu's voice echoed as Lloyd continued to climb. "Perhaps this means you are the one meant to destroy the lord of darkness. All of Ninjago will depend on you."

"You're nothing!" A woman's voice shrieked. "Why can't you do anything right? You're a lazy little kid, you know that? I slave away trying to get work, and all you do is screw around with your friends at the dumpster site. You're nothing like your father."

Lloyd reached the top of the cavern and punched the ceiling. As rocks started to fall Lloyd started to push them back, shooting beams of light into the cave.

"I know it's hard sometimes Morro," A man's voice said. "Your mother gets frustrated when we don't have everything. That's why you need to believe that in the future, times will get better. When I get up in the morning, I don't want to go to work. So you know what I tell myself? I say, Tom, you've got a wife and a kid to take care of. It may be boring work, but who knows? Maybe today I'll get a raise and things will get better. And it works every time."

"Every time?" Morro's voice responded.

"You're special Morro, remember that. You'll do great things in the future. Better than what either your mother or I have done in either of our lifetimes."

Lloyd pulled himself out of the cave. The voices washed out behind him as he scrambled on the top, the light blinding him.

Lloyd held out his hands in front of him and suddenly felt his hand hit a surface that felt like a doorknob.

Opening one eye Lloyd tightened his grip on the doorknob and opened the door before being sucked back into the darkness.

Lloyd fell back into the emptiness. As the door started to close he ran forward to stop it, but the door quickly closed on him and disappeared. Shaking, Lloyd fell back down.

"I didn't really need to see anymore anyway."

After a moment Lloyd grabbed his throat. "I can still talk." Lloyd looked up. "Morro?"

Just as he expected, Morro didn't respond.

Lloyd took a shuddering breath. "I…I understand why you're doing this Morro. I can't imagine what you've had to go through. But you need to listen to me. Being the green ninja isn't all about glory and fame or having the power of the all of the elements. It's a burden. I was still a kid when I aged up and yet everyone counted on me. And worst of all, I had to face my father to defeat the Overlord. I didn't even know if he was going to be okay when I used my golden power at him."

Lloyd paused, looking down. "What's the point in possessing me? To feel better about yourself and believe that you're stronger than me? The Overlord's already defeated-why would you care?"

Lloyd closed his eyes. "Unless…you're using it all as revenge. You don't care about defeating the Overlord…All you want is to be the green ninja when you destroy Ninjago in spite!"

Lloyd stood up. "I'm not just going to give up and let you use my body for your own revenge. I'm going to get out of here and see my friends again. I'll show you what I'm capable of."

* * *

After spiraling down from a building after defeating another ghost warrior Morro stood proudly in front of the crowd.

The crowd responded enthusiastically and Morro smirked before his face suddenly contorted into pain and he bent forward.

"I will…see you later. I suppose that saving Ninjago doesn't protect you from stomach pains."

Flashing a smile the citizens laughed as Morro walked past them. As soon as he rounded the corner he grabbed his stomach.

Bansha appeared in front of him. "What was possibly bad enough to drive you away before the plan could be finished?"

"Lloyd is…resisting my possession," Morro said, groaning. "I can't continue to hold him in."

Bansha waved the other ghosts forward. "Prepare the mech. We cannot allow the citizens to see Morro like this."

Morro knelt onto the ground, hacking as the ghosts hurriedly went to their tasks, with Bansha watching over the alleyway to make sure that no one had seen them.

* * *

"It was getting a bit dull in how easy it was to control you," Morro said.

Facing Lloyd on his chair Morro regained his confidence in his ghost form. The base was still illuminated by only a few candles to prevent Lloyd from discovering their location, although Morro had to admit that the scenery gave him a thrill when interrogating the green ninja.

Lloyd gripped the handles of the cage he was imprisoned in, but his grip was loose. "I will get out of here."

Morro stifled a yawn. "I already heard you the first time you know."

Lloyd flinched. "You could hear me?"

"It is _my_ body after all when I possess you. I'm aware of what happens to it all times, especially when someone is prying into my memories."

"I didn't force you to show me your memories. You did that on your own." Lloyd took a breath as Morro stared down at him. "Because of that I know why you're doing this. But it doesn't make it right."

"Most villainy isn't considered right greenie."

"You're right, you're not a villain." Lloyd stared back with as much force. "You're still a teenager and you're letting your emotions get the best of you."

Morro threw his fist down on the cage. "I am not doing this because of teenager mood swings. I have been crafting this plan for years in the Cursed Realm. Do you really think that I haven't thought all parts of my plan through?"

Lloyd leaned forward. "Why were you looking for the First Spinjitzu Master's tomb? What are you after?"

Morro ignored him. "The plan continues no matter what you think about it. Your body is my vessel to take and use as I please. Your so-called friends can't do anything to stop me. _I_ will make you accept your position." Morro turned to his army. "We're enacting the next phase of the plan sooner than originally planned. And for that I'll need my plaything."

Lloyd stayed firm at Morro's words. No matter what Morro did to get into his head, he wasn't going to give up and let Morro control him.

As the ghosts went to follow their orders, assembling parts for the plan, Lloyd willed himself to resist Morro whenever he tried to possess him, even if it hurt him in the process.


	5. Fears and Ambitions

Chapter 5: Fears and Ambitions

 **Wow, people _really_ like Morro. Like, _really_ like Morro.** **It's a good thing I enjoy writing his character!**

 **Morro and More: I always did feel bad for Morro, but I wished that the season five would have went into more detail. Last chapter was sort of my spin on it, which is the most I've had to add onto the story. I don't usually like diverting from what's already been established, but I'm glad that you enjoyed it!**

 **Lexy Venzon: Ask and you shall receive. :)**

 **Monolaymoo: I'm glad you liked my spin on things! I thought over how I would write his past for a while, but I got pretty lazy in deciding what his dad's name would be. If you're curious, I came up with Tom because, well, Tom and Morro. Tomorro. I know, my jokes are almost as bad as Jay's.**

 **RandomDragon2.0: Thank you for acknowledging that! While I wanted people to sympathize with Morro, the most important part of that chapter was to realize that it still shouldn't justify his possession of Lloyd. And actually, climbing up the mountain will be next chapter. Hopefully everything is flowing well so far.**

 **Steampunk Wilson: I know that we already talked about your review in private messaging, but it just felt weird not to put your name up here. :)**

 **XxVallirenxX: Thank you so much! I'm glad to see that my goal in making this be comparable to the actual seasons is standing true so far.**

The ninja stood in front of an ancient temple. It resembled most temples, with rising levels and a curved roof, but all of the windows were barred up with planks of wood. The temple also just gave off an unearthly feeling, almost as if it didn't belong in this realm.

Wu turned to his students. "To learn airjitzu, you will have to go to the source. Yang, the master of airjitzu, resided in this temple. In fact, is rumored that he still resides in the temple's halls. It is possible to learn airjitzu from him, but he will only allow those who he feels are worthy. This will not be an easy task. That is why I advise you to remember everything you have learned against Yang's tricks. Only then can you-"

Wu stopped as tourists walked past him, carrying mugs and t-shirts with the text: _I went to the most haunted temple in Ninjago_! Looking past the group he saw a gift shop at the temple's base where tourists were communing.

Wu stroked his beard, lost in thought. "I suppose that some warnings wane with time…Still, this poses a different problem. Getting in without tourists seeing you will be difficult."

"We don't want any tourists getting hurt in the process," Zane said. "Although, I suppose the correct phrase now is that we don't want any tourists seeing us and relaying that information to Morro. Given that, the most optimal time to enter the temple would be nightfall."

The tourists immediately stopped what they were doing, reeling back from Zane's words. One boy dropped a mug that splattered glass all over the gift shop's floor. The once bubbly tour guide that was gesturing to the temple eagerly ran up to Zane with terror.

"Oh, you don't want to go in the Haunted Temple at nighttime, not at all! It's said that if you remain in the temple when the sun rises that you'll join Yang and his students…" She paused for dramatic effect and held up her arms, "As a ghost!"

As the other tourists shrieked in terror Zane looked unfazed. "I can't see the validity of your statement."

"You know, that's exactly what another man said before I never saw him again," The tour-guide said, moving her arms. "I believe…" She said, looking at the crowd. "That he even resembled you!"

Cole groaned, face-palming as the tourists gasped. "We don't have time for this. I say that we find another entrance."

"Then this is where we must separate," Wu said. "The temple is only meant for those in training. It will...not allow me to enter." Wu perked up. "Speaking of training, I must focus my time on training Nya. My hopes are that she can join you on your next mission once we figure out what Morro is up to. However, I don't want to rush into things."

"We won't fail you Sensei," Zane said. "We will take each challenge seriously."

Jay pumped his fist. "Yay! And we'll figure out how to do cyclondo!"

Cole raised his brow. "Cyclondo?"

Jay raised his arms. "Cyclondo? The most powerful martial arts form?" Cole continued to give Jay a blank stare, making Jay deflate. "Airjitzu."

"Why didn't you just say that the first time?"

As Wu formed his dragon Kai looked up at him. "We'll do our best Sensei. Although…you might need more luck than us. Nya can be a handful when she gets angry."

Wu chuckled. "Good luck ninja. Work together to pass through the trials. Always remember: it is your most valuable asset."

Leaving the ninja to ponder the meaning of his words Sensei took off with his dragon. The dragon gave a large roar, catching the attention of the tourists.

The tourists ran after him, taking out cameras and awing with enthusiasm.

"Wait!" The tour guide cried, running after them. "I have mugs!"

Cole waved the ninja over to the temple. "Now's the perfect time to enter."

Cole held up his arms, holding his stance as the three flipped on him to create a human ladder. The ladder wobbled for a second, but Jay managed to grab the roof's side.

"Whew..." Jay sighed in relief, sliding himself on top of the rooftop. Jay held out his hand. "Okay Zane, I got you."

Soon, Cole was the only one left on the ground. Zane held onto Kai as he lowered him down to reach Cole's hands. Kai groaned as he lifted Cole up.

"Think you could lay off the cake for a while?"

The ninja fell back as Cole landed onto the roof. There was a crack and Cole suddenly sank down into the roof.

Cole twisted around, prying the boards further apart. "Well, it worked to get into the temple, didn't it? Woo!" Cole landed into the darkness of the temple, the others following after him.

"Let's just hope that we don't have to replace that," Kai said, looking up.

"Well, this is cryptic," Jay said as they looked around. "No one happened to bring a map with them, did they?" Jay laughed weakly as he walked forward blindly, but fell back as a figure appeared in front of him.

"Hey, watch where you're going-"

Jay stopped, seeing the figure of a ghost stand above him. "Uh, guys?"

The child regarded Jay slowly, but eventually turned back and phased through a door near them, their robes trailing behind them.

After a moment of silence Kai grabbed the door's handle. "Guess we have no choice but to go this way," Kai said, opening the door.

The ninja filed into the room, but froze as the door closed behind them. The room was illuminated by the glow of dozens of ghosts. The students floated silently above the floor, bowing their heads to the front of the room to a picture of an older man with a black beard. The ghost they had followed took his place onto an empty mat and joined the others.

Hesitantly, Cole approached the boy. "Did you lead us here on purpose? Hello?"

The ghost looked up, making Cole jump back. "The initiation ceremony is beginning. Sensei must see if you are worthy of airjitzu."

"Um, excuse me, but does Yang even know who we are?" Jay said. "I think we've proven ourselves already. Samukai, Chen, the Overlord, Garmadon-well, Garmadon wasn't really a villain-"

Kai lifted his hand. "Jay, we get it."

"I believe that our attention should be focused on the students," Zane said wearily, overlooking the ghosts. "I think that they're doing…a ceremony of sorts."

One by one the ghosts lifted up their heads and floated up.

"How hard did Yang train these guys?" Cole asked, watching the ghosts assemble into fighting positions, working in unison. "It takes weeks for my dad and his quartet to make their moves match up like that."

The ghosts suddenly leapt forward, their arms raised in a fighting stance.

Kai moved to the door. "I don't think they like their fighting being compared to dance moves…"

The others followed Kai out the door as the ghosts chanted after them. Kai skidded to a stop as Yang appeared in front of him, causing the ninja to slam into one another.

"You think that you are worthy?" Yang spat as they scrambled up to run into the other direction, Zane now leading.

"Ugh, we should have brought our aeroblades!" Jay said, ducking one of Yang's attacks.

"Zane, take a left," Cole said, panting. "I think I saw door there when we came in."

"Affirmative." Zane turned left sharply. Yang, who wasn't expecting the turn, flew straight into the wall.

Not wasting a moment Zane opened the door and motioned the others in. The ninja filed in, taking a moment to collect themselves.

"I should have given that tour guide more credit," Zane said, leaning over. "This temple really is haunted."

"Oh no," Kai moaned, moving his feet as water crept over the floor. "Why does it have to be water of all things?"

Zane tapped the statues where the water was pouring from and tried to block the mouth. The water continued to seep through, even when he placed his other hand on it. "This isn't good. At this rate we'll drown."

Kai perked up. "Drown?! I can't drown!"

"Get a hold of yourself!" Cole said, moving Kai from the door. "Yang wants us to freak out from all of this stuff. Besides, since when have you ever been afraid of water?"

Kai leaned against the door casually. "I'm not afraid of water. I'm just…claustrophobic." Kai smiled, trying to ignore the feeling of water creeping up his legs.

The ninja looked around the room, trying to find an exit. The water continued to fill the room and when it started to reach their shoulders Kai groaned, letting his hands fall from the doorknob.

"There's no use. We're never going to get out of here."

"Hey, positivity is the best policy-oof!" Jay groaned, grabbing his head as he hit the ceiling. "Okay, maybe not so much."

Cole surfaced between them, breathing deeply. "Doing nothing isn't going to help. Yang wouldn't put us in here without an exit."

"Then give us a plan!" Jay exclaimed, throwing his hands up. "I can make motivational speeches too, but that doesn't stop us from drowning. Right, Kai? …Kai?"

Kai shook his head, mumbling to himself. Jay groaned. "Great. Now we have one less ninja helping us."

Zane closed his eyes as Cole and Jay argued, Kai mumbling between them. "Pixal, I need you to analyze any possible exits."

Pixal paused for a moment, searching the room. "There is an elevator shaft. But you will need to be careful. As soon as you open it the water will flood in."

"It's our only option," Zane said, turning to the others. "We must have confidence in Cole," he said, making Cole and Jay quiet, Kai slowly looking up. "But that doesn't mean that every solution must be up to him. We are a team and we aid each other. Now, I believe that there may be an elevator shaft. We don't have much time." Zane inhaled before plunging down.

After a moment Cole and Jay looked at each other and nodded.

"Are you ready motor-mouth?" Cole asked with a lopsided grin.

"Oh, I was ready ages before you dirt for brains."

They dived down, Cole taking Kai with him as they looked around.

Jay tapped Cole and pointed to the end of the room where the shaft was located. Cole nodded and dragged Kai with him as Jay went to get Zane's attention.

Facing the shaft Cole pried it open. The water rushed in, pulling the four in before Zane quickly closed it.

The ninja sat in the shaft, breathing heavily and coughing up water.

"Well, that wasn't so bad," Jay said, smiling before the shaft dropped a few inches. "Oh, come on!"

The shaft plunged down, making the ninja yell before it came to a sudden stop.

Jay slowly put down his hands. "Is it over? Are we done?"

Cole touched the door. "Looks like it." Cole opened the door and they filed out. Kai stumbled and sighed in relief as his feet hit the ground before he looked up.

"Ugh, we're in the same hallway as before!"

They all groaned.

Cole leaned against the wall. "If that's what happened with a fear of water I don't even want to know what happens next."

Kai started to protest, but deflated at seeing their expressions. "Fine, I admit it; I have a fear of water."

"I surmised that was case," Zane said. "But, out of curiosity, why is it appearing more than at any other time? As Cole said, I don't recall it ever being a problem before."

Kai ran his hand through his hair. "That was when I had my powers." Kai bit his lip. "When I was younger Nya and I were playing outside even though our parents told us not to. Nya threw her toy across the pond and I knew we would get in trouble if our parents saw it there so I decided to go it. I almost made it back across when the ice broke and I fell into the water."

Kai shuddered. "If Nya hadn't gotten our parents I probably would have drowned. I just couldn't bring myself to swim up-it was like the water was pulling me down."

Cole put his hand on Kai's shoulder. "Hey, you shouldn't feel bad about what you're afraid of. We're brothers after all. And this is coming from the guy that used to be afraid of dragons."

Jay shivered. "It's a good thing you got over your fear of dragons or we would really be dead meat. I don't even want to know what Yang would have thought up for that one."

"That was only a one-time thing," Cole said defensively. "Rocky was my best friend after that."

Kai snorted. "Guess Jay takes second place to a dragon."

"I apologize if this seems intrusive, but we will need to go over everyone's fears," Zane said, his gaze firm. "I will go next. Previously, my fear was admitting to my changes. This was manifested in the form of my elemental dragon. But after I took control of my elemental dragon, that fear dissipated. I suppose that I would have to say that my fear isn't admitting to my changes, but…having others accept those changes."

Kai gave Zane an apologetic look.

Jay shuffled his feet. "Well, I've always been scared of closed spaces. And not just like the elevator shaft. It's only when I'm by myself."

Everyone turned to Cole expectantly.

"I don't really know," Cole said quickly. "It's like Jay said-I got over my fear of dragons."

Before the ninja could pry further the ghost student from before appeared from the wall, making Cole jump back and shriek. He looked to Kai. "You are still fearful of water. The task taught you nothing…but my master was intrigued by your teamwork. So he let this one pass. But, is that really enough for the next test?"

The ghost dissipated as the floor under their feet shook before flipping open to reveal a trap door. Screaming, the four fell down separate chutes.

Jay breathed heavily, looking up to find himself in a small concreate room. "Guys?"

"Look at the floor's corner Jay."

Jay looked down to find a small speaking tube lodged into the wall. Jay knelt down and gripped it tightly. "Zane, is that you?"

"We're all here actually," Kai said. "We must be in separate rooms."

Jay started to shiver, the magnitude of the situation coming over him. He stared at the walls and started to feel them close in on him. They were so cold and gray-

Jay gripped the speaking tube tighter. "You guys are still there, right? Guys?"

Jay cursed and shook the tube. "Of course it would be broken. Everything in this temple is run down." Jay sighed and focused back on the room. "Okay Jay, nothing to be afraid of, just a room, by yourself. It's just a room, that's right. Just a room."

He closed his eyes and felt the wall to stand up. "Hey, this isn't so bad. It actually feels a little bigger-"

Running into the wall Jay fell back and was forced to open his eyes. "So much for that." Jay stood up and started to pace across the room.

"You're a ninja, aren't you? I should be able to get out of this." Jay sighed, looking down. "If Cole were here he could probably punch his way out of here, even without his super strength." Jay looked up at the room's ceiling. "How did I even get mad at him? Like I could think of much better."

Jay shook his head out of his thoughts. "Come on, this isn't the time to be moping. I just need to…find something. Hmm…"

After a moment of staring at the walls it suddenly hit Jay. "Hey, this is just like those Prince Donegan movies! I bet there's a loose brick around here somewhere."

Eagerly, Jay started to feel the walls. His hand stopped at one of the bricks. "Hah! I knew it!"

Pulling it back the brick clicked, but nothing else happened. Jay groaned.

"Wait, is there writing on here? Left eye?" Jay shook his head, squinting to make sure he read it right.

"Okay…That's not very helpful." Jay looked back at the wall and started to study it more closely.

Slowly, an image started to form, almost like the days he would tell his parents about the images the clouds formed at the junkyard. Some of the bricks were more darkly colored and if he strung them together it looked like…

"A face!" Jay looked around and landed his gaze on the left eye. He gripped the brick tightly. "Years of ninja training don't fail me now…Yes!"

The bricks clicked in and Jay beamed, stepping back. "Hah hah! I knew it!"

The wall swung up, revealing Cole in the chamber next to him, followed by Zane and finally Kai. Kai looked to his chamber side and found that it had revealed a staircase.

"Oh man, am I glad to see you guys," Jay said brightly. "I think I was starting to lose it in there."

"I guess we go up the staircase then," Kai said, looking up. "This place creeps me out more and more."

Cole turned to Jay as they climbed up. "What exactly happened in there?"

"Nothing I want to relive again," Jay said firmly, letting out a breath of relief as they reached the hallway. "We're free!" After taking a few more breathes he rounded on the others and pointed at Cole's chest. "We are _not_ getting separated again."

"And how do you plan on doing that?" Kai asked.

"Wait here," Jay said, running into the room closest to them. A few moments later he returned with a rope.

"Really Jay?" Kai snorted. "You can't be serious."

"Hey, I thought that these trials were supposed to be about teamwork," Jay said, tying the rope around his waist. "What's better than literally tying ourselves together?"

Cole took the rope from Jay, sighing. "I guess we've had worse ideas. I'll take the front and Kai can be after Jay. Are you okay with being in the back Zane?"

Zane nodded, taking the rope from Kai, offering a small smile. "If it's on your judgement I'm fine with it."

Cole smiled, turning back and puffed up his chest. "Keep your eyes open, we don't know when those ghost students will decide to show up again."

As they started to walk forward Zane felt that like someone was watching them. He looked back slowly. The hall was empty.

Zane was about to turn back when he suddenly saw a ghost round the corner.

"Guys, I think Zane saw something," Kai said wearily.

"Another trial already?" Jay whined as they tried to run forward. "When I see Yang again I'm going to give him a piece of my mind."

"And we're shuffling, we're shuffling," Cole said, leading the others forward as fast as he could without tripping.

The ghost students zoomed forward, making the dark hallway light up with green as they started to circle around Zane. Cole tried to go faster, but the ghosts continued to cloud around him, ignoring Zane's attempts to swat them away.

The student's faces suddenly started to shift. They were no longer students of Yang's, but children from Stiix.

As Zane gasped one child chuckled eerily, stroking his cheek. "Look at how shiny he is. I bet I could make a lot of money melting him down for parts."

"It's not like anyone would care," A girl affirmed. "He's a robot after all. It's not like he has feelings or anything."

Kai waved them away. "Hey, buzz off! Zane, are you alright?"

Zane shook his head as the ghosts rounded over him again. "Leave me alone…I am not that much different from you."

The ghosts laughed eerily.

"Hold on, I'm going to turn a corner," Cole said, swinging them into a room.

Jay leaned over as they stopped, catching his breath. Once he looked up he noticed the pool of water on the floor. "Isn't this where we almost drowned? Why are we in here again?"

"I just needed a little water to dampen the mood," Cole said, smirking as the ghosts followed them into the room and shrieked at seeing the room drenched. They soon started to shove past one another to the door, flying away in a mass of green.

Only the student from before remained as the others went past him. "It is remarkable that you have made it this far. Most don't pass the first trial. Then again, none have passed the final task either."

Without waiting for the ninja to reply the ghost faded, leaving them in the room.

"Are you okay Zane?" Kai asked, helping him up.

"I'm just a little shaken," Zane said. "We need to focus on Cole's fear. That ghost's words were less than encouraging."

"Great, now we have no idea what to expect," Jay said as they filed out of the room.

"Oh, I wouldn't say that."

Kai perked up, looking down the hallway to see a shadowy figure. "Morro? What are you doing here?"

The figure stepped forward, revealing Morro's smirking face. "Couldn't I just say hello?" Morro said mockingly. He fixed his attention on Cole. "Oh, so now you're leading. I guess that makes sense since I've taken control of Lloyd's body."

Cole wavered as Morro lifted the scroll up. "Looking for this?"

"You already know airjitzu," Kai hissed. "Why do you need to take the scroll?"

"I like to know things that my opponent doesn't." Morro ran forward and the ninja jumped into attack positions.

Jay jumped up; aiming to kick Morro when he dropped down, but Morro grabbed his leg and threw him across the room.

Zane appeared seconds later, trying to land punches on Morro while Kai crept up behind him. When Kai reached to hit him Morro suddenly turned around and grabbed Kai's arm, twisting it. Morro started to spin Kai around, hitting Zane and sending the two back.

Zane groaned and looked back, seeing the sun creep up from the temple's windows. He dodged Morro's attack and slid down to Jay and quickly helped him up.

"We're running out of time. Phony myths or not, we can't risk staying in here."

Zane and Jay reached the door. Kai ignored them and ran at Morro, but cursed, skidding to a stop as he saw the light rising in the windows. Giving Morro a scathing look Kai reluctantly followed after them.

Cole started to go after him. Just before he reached the door he heard Morro's laugh and looked over his shoulder to find Morro holing the scroll up tauntingly.

Cole looked back to Zane, Kai, and Jay. "There should still be enough time. Go ahead without me, I'm going to get the scroll."

Ignoring their protests Cole ran back into the temple and threw a punch at Morro. The ninja tried to come in, but with a flick of his wrist Morro sent a gust of wind to close the door. As they pounded on the door Morro turned his attention to Cole. He easily grabbed Cole's arm as he ran to him and flipped him over onto the ground.

Cole groaned. "You're a lot more powerful than I remember." Cole dodged Morro's attack and realization dawned over his face. "Or is it because you're not the same person? Isn't that right…Yang?"

Morro's eyes widened before his lips curled into a twisted smile. Lloyd's gi faded into ornate, brown robes and his hair grew into a long black beard. He touched his head and a straw hat similar to Sensei Wu's appeared.

"Good job," He said. There was genuine enthusiasm in the ghost's voice as he gave Cole a broad smile. "I didn't think that you'd make it this far. I admire the fight in you-it's a shame that you weren't close enough."

Cole tried to attack with a series of kicks and punches, but they merely went through the ghost.

"I've never heard of a team leader abandoning their team to fight the enemy themselves," Yang sneered, leaning forward. "Oh, I forgot. You aren't their leader, are you?"

Cole's eyebrows rose, but he shook his head, ignoring the ghost's taunts. "If that's what you're trying to use to get in my head you might as well give it up. I'm not letting the team down because of an inferiority complex. I'm not Kai you know."

Yang moved swiftly around Cole and made a show of holding up his hand, looking around. "But the green ninja isn't with you anymore. You can't tell me that that doesn't change things a little bit. Why, if you just didn't manage to rescue him, I suppose the position would fall to you."

Yang shrugged. "Although I guess you could always stop Morro and let things return to normal. Dead weight to the ninja team. A ninja without a purpose."

"Then that gives me just the more reason to stay," Cole said, lunging at the ghost. Yang merely laughed as he went through him. Cole looked around, trying to find something that he could use against the ghost.

Around the corner he saw the student from before watching him. The student jumped and tried to fly away. Cole quickly caught up to him and turned around the corner. Yang was still laughing as the sun continued to rise.

Cole let out a sigh of relief and returned his attention to the ghost, but gasped as he saw that the ghost had made it to the middle of the hall.

"Wait, just hear me out," Cole said, rising his hand.

The ghost stopped and sheepishly turned back. "Make it quick. If Yang sees me talking to you-"

"Then what? You'll be in the same position that you've been in for years? This is your chance to go against Yang and help someone in something that you believe in-not Yang." Cole offered a gentle smile. "Come on, you wouldn't have been watching me if you didn't care. I can tell that you wanted to help us when you were talking to us earlier."

Emotions flickered over the ghost's face. "But, I-" The ghost started to fly back into the hall until he heard Yang's laughter. He stopped and closed his eyes, his body shaking. "Let's do it," He said, his voice cold.

Yang watched the windows and laughed. "It's been a while since I've had a new student. And an especially powerful one at that."

"Master, the ninja is gone," The ghost said, bowing his head to Yang. "Should I call the others to find him?"

Yang smirked. "There's no need." As he focused his attention to the student Cole crept around him, reaching for the scroll at Yang's side. "He won't be able to open the door with the curse I put on it. We'll retrieve him once the transformation is complete."

With a quick, fluid motion Cole grabbed the scroll. Yang had barely turned around to see what was happening when the ghost student lunged at him.

The student struggled to hold Yang down and turned to Cole. "H-hurry," He gasped. "Use the windows. There are pieces of wood, but you should be able to get through them."

Yang flipped the student over and turned to the windows. "Wait, no-"

Cole threw a punch at the windows, grunting as he pulled the boards aside before slipping through, pressing the scroll tightly against his chest.

* * *

After sending a final punch at the door Jay fell back, holding his face his hands.

"There's no use, the door won't budge. This is all my fault. Why didn't I just tell him that I felt jealous? What was the point of going through that room otherwise?"

Zane, usually the calm one of the group, tried to remain firm as the examined the door. However, even he couldn't push down the tour guide's words from his head. "I'm sure that there's some way that we can get the door down. Perhaps if we-"

Zane stopped, seeing the glass break from the windows. Kai raced over, grabbing Cole.

"Come on, help me get him out of there!"

Holding onto each other the three pulled Cole out and fell back onto the ground. Jay quickly got up and raced to Cole.

"Cole thank goodness you're-" Jay faltered. "Cole…"

Cole grabbed the scroll and smirked. "Don't worry, I got the scroll. What's up with the long face motor mouth?"

"Cole, you're…" Kai faltered, staring at his brother with wide eyes.

Cole lifted his hand with the scroll and dropped it, seeing that his hand was a ghostly green.

"I'm…I'm a ghost…"

Yang's laugh boomed from the temple as the sun continued to rise.


	6. Eye of the Storm

Chapter 6: Eye of the Storm

 **Well, my computer decided to finally give out. That combined with the fact that I don't have a keyboard for my IPad accounts for why it took so long to get this chapter out.**

 **Because of that it'll take me longer to get chapters out in the future. Sorry about that.**

 **From Chapter 4:**

 **PrairieSkies: It was a bit difficult to write Morro's past while keeping the reader aware that Lloyd is witnessing all of this, so I'm glad that you enjoyed my take on it! Yea, I did take some inspiration from A Christmas Carol. I had to read the play and watch a performance for it, so the story is pretty fresh in my mind.**

 **StoriesAreMagic: Hah, that's great! While I do like Morro personally my brother is the same way. To this day he still finds Morro irritating, or a butthead as you call it.**

 **From Chapter 5:**

 **Monolaymoo: I was kind of struggling between deciding if I should keep Cole a human or turn him into a ghost, but I eventually decided on following the show. Cole's transformation into a ghost is such a pivotal moment for his character that it would feel weird if I didn't include it. That being said, I definitely plan on focusing on his reaction to it a bit more than in the show. I'm glad that you enjoyed my pun! I'm such a sucker for those milk carton jokes.**

 **Steampunk Wilson: Yang is such a frustrating character. I still don't really like him, even after his redemption in Day of the Departed. But, what can you do I guess. My main goal for that chapter was to broaden the focus on each of their fears, so it's great to see that that all worked out!**

 **RandomDragon2.0: I feel like Kai is one of those people that is afraid to admit their weaknesses, so it was definitely a process of laying out hints leading up to him finally admitting it. Cole's transformation as a ghost will be pretty important (more so than the show), so I'm glad to hear that I set it up well.**

 **StoriesAreMagic: Your review really put a smile on my face, especially the comment with Cole comparing their ceremony to dance moves! Yea, in hindsight it makes no sense that Jay would be afraid of attics when he lives in a trailer. I guess the writers just forgot that detail? That actually reminds me of another inconsistency, where Zane says that he was dreaming and says that nindroids don't dream in the next. Also, "goes ghost" has to become a tag line for something.**

 **PrairieSkies: I always did find the citizens in Ninjago to be a bit airheaded, so you know, it wouldn't be that surprising to me if they actually did act like that in the show. I really enjoyed writing the fight scene between Cole and Yang. There really aren't that many Cole fighting scenes in the show.**

Kai trudged into the living room and sighed before collapsing onto the couch. The others looked up hopefully, but seeing Kai's expression they deflated.

"I don't get it-why won't he let us help him?" Kai groaned, looking down. "He's being stubborn. I've tried everything I can think of, but no matter what I do he won't open that door."

Wu was in a similar state of defeat, the wrinkles on his face outlined by worry and a lack of sleep. "I have reprimanded myself enough last night. What has been done cannot be redone. I will try. If all else fails he will have to come out eventually."

Wu grabbed his makeshift staff, meeting his gaze with his students before making his way into the hallway to Cole's room.

Nya stood up. "Wait, I'll come too Sensei. The worst thing that can happen is that he refuses, and he's done that to Kai enough times today already."

Before Nya turned into the hall she looked to Jay, confused that he made no sign of moving from the living room couch. "Aren't you coming too?"

Jay jumped and rubbed his arm. "Uh, I'm pretty sure he doesn't want me there. We weren't exactly on the best terms before it happened." Jay bit his lip and turned back.

Nya had met Jay and the other ninja a few years back already and she was pretty used to their personalities and quirks. Out of all of the petty things that Jay ranted about, this was the least she had heard him speak about anything. Ever. Nya gave him a worried glance, seeing that Jay was refusing to make eye contact. Okay, now that was weird.

The soft clack of Wu's staff brought Nya out of her thoughts. Seeing that Wu was already down the hallway Nya hurried to follow him, reminding herself to check on Jay as soon as she got the chance.

* * *

Cole groaned, burying his face into his pillow. The earth ninja's room wasn't usually the cleanest with his weights and albums shoved onto racks and shelves, but now the room was littered with items on the floor. The closet door was thrown open and a mountain of clothes were scattered across the floor. Food wrappers and containers were thrown around haphazardly, the trash can pushed over. Cole turned over, throwing his hand onto the side table. His transparent hand moved through cds and a comic book Jay had given him before it settled on a yogurt cup.

Cole narrowed his eyes in concentration. Eventually his hand started to solidify around the cup and he managed to grab it. He sighed in relief and started to peel it open when someone knocked on the door.

His concentration wavered and the cup rolled onto the floor. Cole turned to the door in annoyance.

"Whoever it is, I'm not in the mood right now. And Kai, if it's you again, I wasn't joking about last time. If you take one step in here I'm cooking dinner for the next few weeks."

Cole jumped, hearing the sound of an old man laughing softly. "Oh, I didn't know it was you Sensei. Uh, could you come back another time? It isn't exactly the best in here. And honestly, I don't really feel like talking right now anyway."

Cole moved to grab some of the wrappers when the door opened. He sighed and the wrappers fell through his hands. "What was the point of knocking if you were going to come in anyway?"

Wu shrugged, sitting on the bed. "It seemed polite." Wu turned to look at Cole seriously. "You shouldn't deal with this by yourself Cole." Wu pointed his makeshift staff at Cole. "I along with your team will support you."

Cole stepped forward and the staff went through his chest. "This is why I can't let them see me right now. I'd look like such a hypocrite! Here I was, going on yesterday about teamwork and spirit and I can't even find the energy to get cake from the fridge."

Nya hesitantly walked into the room. She wrinkled her nose at the smell, maneuvering over the items littered on the floor until she reached Cole and put her hand on his shoulder.

"You really need to clean up in here," She said, trying to put humor in her voice. "Try to think of it this way-now you can fight the ghosts without having to use the aeroblades."

She winced, seeing Cole's expression. "Yea, I know, not helpful." Nya took a deep breath. "I had to become the water ninja. I tried everything I could think of to fight against it, but as I continued to try being Samurai X I realized that I was being selfish. So, I've accepted that role. I know that it sounds selfish, but we're going to need you in this fight. Having a ghost to fight an army of ghosts is essential. And don't think that we won't give up on you. As soon as we defeat Morro we'll figure out a way to turn you back. I'll look through hundreds of ancient scrolls if that's what it takes."

Cole pulled Nya into a hug. She tensed, but eventually relaxed into the hug before he let go. Cole gave Nya and Wu a weak smile.

"I don't like it, but I won't say anything about it if that's what you think is best." Cole turned to Wu. "So, what's next? Cause I'm looking forward to taking down that impersonator, once and for all."

Wu looked at Cole with concern. "Are you positive that you are ready to begin so soon? Perhaps it would best for you to rest for the next few missions."

Cole shook his head. "Sorry Sensei, but I can't sit around. Can you imagine Kai or Jay leading the team? And I already know that they won't listen to Zane either. No thanks."

Nya puffed her chest. "I'm going too. Training is good and all, but it isn't the same as getting experience."

Wu looked at his students. As they stared at him firmly he gave a nod and stood up, using his wooden staff. "I trust you with this then. Support each other through every trial and error you may encounter. It is the best advice I can give you. In the meantime, I'm going to return to the living room. I'm sure that the others will be very glad to hear of your recovery."

Once Wu left, giving both of them a reassuring look, Cole and Nya exhaled and turned to each other.

"This is my first real mission," Nya said, looking down. "What if I really am not ready?"

Cole put his hand on her shoulder, making Nya look up. "Nya, you've been doing missions with us for as long as I can remember. If anything, you should have been a part of the team a long time ago."

Nya played with her hair. "Jeez, and here I came trying to help you." Nya offered a small smile. "Thanks Cole."

"It's like Zane said yesterday," Cole said, smiling for the first time since they had been at the temple. "Everyone plays their part. Now let's go see the rest of the team. It's felt like it's been ages since I've last seen motor mouth."

* * *

As Nya walked out into the living room Jay looked up, almost falling off the couch.

"How is he?" He asked anxiously. "He isn't mad at us, is he?"

Nya looked back into the hallway. "Cole, come on, no one's going to make fun of you!"

Jay stood up. "Cole?"

After a few moments of silence Cole took a deep breath and walked into the living room. He winced as the light washed over him, revealing his ghostly form. While his appearance wasn't altered, his body had a green hue over it. One could easily see through him, like he was slowly flickering in and out of existence.

Kai clenched his fists. "What else is Morro going to take from us?" Kai asked, his voice rising. "He took Lloyd and now he turned Cole into a ghost. We can't just keep chasing after Morro like this. We don't even know anything about his plan or what he's after."

"Actually, I believe that I've found a lead about Morro's whereabouts."

Everyone looked up, hearing Misako's voice. As she entered the room, pushing a chalkboard with her, she suddenly turned to face them, making the ninja exhale.

Previously, Misako could go for days without sleep, eagerly searching through Ninjago's scrolls without losing energy. Now, however, she looked like she had been up all night. She had dark circles under her eyes and her clothes were baggy and loose.

"What did you find?" Wu asked, trying to get the ninja to stop staring.

Misako shook her head. Slowly, some life returned to her eyes. "Yes, of course. I received a message from one of my closest friends, Olga. She lives in a small village on Ninjago's highest peaks, the Wailing Alps. I'm sure that you've heard of them before." Misako directed her hand to the board. "Apparently, there have been sightings of ghosts trying to travel up the mountain. We will have to hurry if we want to reach them in time. The Destiny's Bounty has finished repairs, so I can tell you what I translated from the scroll Cole received while we go there."

"Who even cares about airjitzu anymore?" Jay mumbled as they filed out of the teashop, taking supplies to the Destiny's Bounty, which was waiting silently at the dock. "It wasn't worth Cole getting turned into a ghost. It wasn't worth any of this."

Cole suddenly gave up behind him, making Jay shriek and drop the supplies he was holding.

Cole laughed as he struggled to pick them up. Jay bit back the usual banter he would have with Cole, and instead watched him wide-eyed. "Are you sure you're feeling okay?"

"I didn't get turned into a ghost to get the scroll only for you guys not to learn airjitzu," Cole said as they boarded the Bounty, casting a nervous glance at the water foaming up the sides of the ship. As Jay casted Cole a worried look Cole spoke quickly. "So, what does the scroll say Misako?"

Misako pulled up a container that was tied at her side and undid the lid, lifting up the scroll and carefully pressing it onto a table on the deck. Rubbing her eyes she read over it slowly. "Unlike the First Spinjitzu Master, Yang was unclear in describing his martial art. There is no specific pattern in performing it. He instead describes that 'the user must let their thoughts go and feel free and light, yet directed to their target. They will then find themselves lifted up by a vortex of their elemental power into the air, temporarily giving them the ability of flight.'"

"Okay…well, that's helpful," Cole said, reaching to grab the scroll. However, his hand passed through it and Zane lifted it up instead, opening it up so that Cole could see it. Cole sighed, but tried to focus as Zane read it over.

"This is all very fascinating. Yang had a philosophical approach to his art. I'm not surprised that he took such pride in developing it."

Jay looked over his shoulder. "Really? Cause all I can see is chicken scratch."

Suddenly the Bounty shook and started to lift up. Nya called out from the cockpit.

"And we're off. I'm not sure how close we can get to the mountains though. Apparently there are a lot of trees growing along its side."

Wu tapped his staff. "Don't worry, I have all of the arrangements set."

* * *

The ninja stared wide-eyed at the mountain's base, where a long trail of wallipers were trudging up the mountain's side. Finally, Kai broke the silence and walked up to Wu, who was looking at the scene as if it were perfectly natural.

"Um, Sensei, I don't see any vehicles."

"What are you referring to? Our ride has already arrived."

Kai flinched back. "We're riding on those?"

"The forest is providing us with its own transportation," Wu said calmly. "The wallipers are currently on their annual migration. They are going the same direction as us. It would be foolhardy to not advantage of that."

Kai groaned as they approached the row of wallipers. "We're ninja, not a group of mountain herders-Hey!"

A walliper stopped walking and licked Kai's face with a long slurp, making Kai jump back and wipe his face, trying to get rid of the walliper's germs.

Zane swung onto a yak next to him and smirked. "It appears that it is showing affection to you Kai."

"Very funny Zane," Kai snapped as he followed suit, clambering onto the walliper's back. "When do you think is the last time they've taken a bath?"

"I don't know Kai, I think they're kind of cute," Nya said, patting hers on its head. The walliper looked up affectionately.

The wallipers trudged forward in a long procession up the mountain, snorting occasionally.

"So," Cole said, "Any ideas on how to pass the time?"

Jay raised his hand. "Ooh, we could do road songs! Didn't you learn at that Opera Heiner-"

"Marty's Oppenheimer School of Performing Arts," Cole corrected. "And to be honest, I didn't listen half the time the teacher yapped to us. But there was a song that my dad always sung when we went on road trips for his group." Cole cleared his throat and started to sing. "Ninety-nine kettles of tea on the wall-"

"Ninety-nine kettles of tea!" The others echoed. "Take one down, pass it around, ninety-eight kettles of tea on the wall!"

The wallipers lifted their manes and bellowed with them, honking out the lyrics as they started their weary journey up the mountain.

* * *

After ninety-seven more verses the wallipers refused to go any further. Since the sun was sinking below the horizon anyway they decided to set up camp for the night using the supplies they had towed with them from the Bounty. After starting a small fire Nya stood back to admire her handiwork and sat down with the others, the fire illuminating their faces against the darkness. Kai sighed, resting his hands on his chin as he stared longingly into the flames.

"Let's get started then," Wu said, using his staff to stand up. "It will be impossible to reach the mountain's summit without knowing airjitzu. So, as you were setting up camp I took the liberty of putting up flags that match the color of each of your gi's. Your goal is to create a force strong enough to lift you up, allowing you to grab the flag. According to the scroll, you must let go of your thoughts. Negative memories or thoughts can be just as heavy as a weight."

As the ninja walked to each of their respective flags Jay noticed that Cole had puffed up his chest and planted his feet firmly.

Taking a breath Jay tried to show similar enthusiasm. "I don't want to brag or anything, but I was the first ninja to learn spinjitzu," He said, turning to Cole and Nya. "This will be nothing."

Jay lifted his arms up and closing his eyes in concentration.

'Okay Jay. All you have to do is fly up. No problem. Then Cole will feel like it was worth getting the scroll and...bam! Problem solved!'

Jay gave out a cry and jumped right into the tree.

"Man…"

The others followed suit with similar results. Wu held up the scroll, pacing around them frantically as he tried to instruct them.

"Kai, you're letting your emotions get the best of you. Try again, but this time make sure you let it happen naturally. Remember our training with patience Nya. I know that it is more difficult for you since you haven't learned spinjitzu, but I have confidence in you. Cole, you're overcompensating. It's the same for you Jay. You're both trying too hard and it's producing the same results. Zane, airjitzu relies on emotion. You can't think of this logically or you'll never get off the ground."

Kai groaned, falling back again. The flag seemed like it was mocking him as it blew gently in the wind. Kai jumped up, trying to grab it, but his hand only grazed it. As Wu circled around him Kai turned around.

"We're getting nowhere with this. Can't Nya find a way to get the Bounty to the peak?"

"I am a master of spinjitzu," Wu confessed. "Not airjitzu. I am only able to surmise what would be the best training regimen from Yang's notes. We'll try for a few more hours. Perhaps then we will see better results."

As the sun started to rise overtop the trees the ninja groaned, trying to pull their blankets over their heads.

Kai threw his hand over his head . "Cole, you've been snoring all night. Can't you just hold off for once?"

"Sorry to burst your bubble, but that isn't me hothead."

Kai started to open his eyes. "What do you-ah!"

The walliper over him breathed heavily, beads of drool dropping down. Kai pushed him away and fell back. Once the walliper trudged back Kai yawned and turned to his companions.

"So, how far did you guys get last night?"

"Not much better than you," Cole said. "I'll be surprised if any of us are ready for this mission."

"It is certainly different from spinjitzu," Zane said. "I hate to admit it, but Sensei is unfit to teach us. We would see far better results if we were able to get Yang to teach us."

"No way!" Cole protested. "Not in a million years would I ask Yang for help. His idea of students is becoming a part of his army of slaves. I don't know about you, but we were lucky that we got out of there when we did."

Jay sighed, sinking his head into a walliper's fur. "If Zane couldn't get it we're never going to get anywhere."

Nya was strangely quiet during the exchange. Fiddling with her blanket she suddenly stood up. "Misako, you said you had a friend in the village here, right? Maybe we should ask her a few questions."

"I would like to see Olga again," Misako said, turning to Wu. "Only if it's okay with you of course."

"A break is much needed," Wu admitted. "We will spend a little time there, but no longer than an hour. We still need to stay focused."

"I'll lead the way then," Misako said, getting onto her walliper. "To think, I can still remember the exact path after all these years."

* * *

The ninja looked on with awe as they entered the village. While Stiix seemed to have a mysterious air around it Flinway was immediately welcoming. Several people in long dresses and overalls took a break from their chores or conversations to wave at the ninja. A group of musicians nodded at each other and played a lively tune that reverberated through the mountain's valley.

Misako seemed to gain back her energy as she greeted people warmly. Eventually she lead the ninja to a cafe with outdoor seating and sat down at one of the larger tables.

The waiter, an older woman with a tight bun, noticed them and after serving a customer walked up to them with a warm smile.

"Koko, oh how good it is to see you! I was afraid that my message wouldn't reach you, what with these terrible winds we've been having."

Misako smiled. "Ninja, this is Olga. I met her on one of my trips several years ago. She works at the shop here."

"Oh, I don't work here anymore! That old crook finally sold the shop to me three summers ago." Olga directed their attention to the storefront, her chest swelling with pride as she read the sign. "'Fireplace Cafe, owned and operated by Olga Woolley." Olga turned back to the ninja. "Now, what can I get for you? My, you need some meat on those bones young lady! You need to show these boys your strength. Show them that you mean business!"

Nya laughed. "Actually, we were wondering if you could tell us more about the sightings people have been reporting. We're on the lookout for anything that might seem suspicious."

"Well, it is a sad story, but for Koko's friends I will tell you. Let me get you some tea first though. You all look so tired!"

After all the ninja were holding a cup of tea Olga sat down, holding her own cup tightly.

"All this week people have been saying that they've been hearing these shrieks all across the mountain. There can only be one explanation for that." Her gaze turning serious, Olga leaned in. "Bansha has returned."

Zane placed his hand on his chin. "That's the ghost I faced at Stiix. If she's here, then Morro is most certainly here as well."

"Bansha…" Misako mused. "Isn't that an old folk story of Flinway's?"

"Oh, it's no folk story Koko. My mother knew Bansha when she was a lass. Although back then she was known as Helen, the most beautiful girl of Flinway."

"Helen was the daughter of the mayor. My mother and the other girl's admired her to no end. She had golden hair and she could swim in the gifts her father gave her if she wanted to. But most of all, she had a beautiful voice. Her singing could bring anyone to tears. She had everything, and I suppose that was what made her bored in our small village. She wanted more than that you see. So she started to do things behind people's backs. She always knew how to get to people-what their most prized possession was or their greatest fear. She always got away with it."

"But one day, my mother caught her. As she was walking home from school she realized that she had forgotten her books, so of course she hurried back. Little did she know, Helen was planning one of her schemes. My mother saw her at the teacher's desk, holding the class pet. She was just about to throw the poor hamster out the window when my mother yelled for her to stop and a villager heard her."

"You see, they figured out how Helen was doing these things. She could read people's minds and find what bothered them the most. Magic is strictly prohibited, so they told her that she had to leave. But Helen couldn't accept that. At night the villagers could hear her traveling across the mountain, shrieking with the howling winds. So she became known as Bansha the sorceress."

"Eventually, her terror ended. She tried to get rid of us by sending an avalanche of snow on the village. Instead, she misjudged her aim and the snow hit her instead. But some say that her spirit still haunts us. My mother suspected that she wanted more than just our village-she wanted to control everything."

Olga shook her head. "It's such a dreadful tale! To think that she'd come back after all these years…"

Olga blew her nose and Misako leaned over to support her.

Cole stood up, raising his fist. "Don't worry Olga, we'll stop her before she can even take one step into Flinway. Where did you say you've been you've been having these sightings again?"

"We've been hearing the screeching everywhere, but some say that they've caught glimpses of her along the village's south side."

"We'll go there then," Cole said, turning to his team. "Alright guys?"

"But we don't know airjitzu yet!" Jay protested. "How are we going to reach them?"

"Well, we can't say no now," Nya whispered, gesturing to the trembling Olga. "She'll be heartbroken!"

"Would you really?" Olga said, looking up to Cole. "Thank you young man, bless your heart! Oh Koko, you really know how to find such bright souls in such a dark world!"

"The more we stand around, the closer Morro's getting to the peak," Kai said. "We'll just have to figure out airjitzu as we go along. Come on."

As Kai lead the ninja away Jay mumbled under his breath. "I was hoping he wouldn't say that…"

Meanwhile, Cole was trying to pry Olga off of him.

"I really have been blessed! I just knew that I still had some good luck in me-"

Wu held up his cup. "Your tea is the best I've had in years Olga. Would you mind if you gave us some for the road?"

Olga jumped up. "The road! I had almost forgotten-you'll be freezing up there! Just wait here while I get you some parkas I have in the back. Goodness, what a terrible host I've been!"

Cole sighed in relief as Olga let go of him and ran into the cafe. "Thanks Sensei. I don't how much more of that I've could have taken. And this is coming from someone who used to have super strength."

Wu looked like he was about to say something, but he instead nodded towards the others. "I will see you all later. Meet us at the camp when you have returned."

Misako looked to Wu as Cole left with the ninja, towing the parkas Olga had given them. "Don't think I didn't notice that look in your eyes Wu. That was very brave of you to let him go after what happened on the last mission."

Wu sighed, taking a sip from his cup. "He'll only get used to his body if I let him go. Besides, I know that the others will care for him. Still, I can't shake off the feeling that something bad is about to happen…"

* * *

The sun was high in the sky and made the snow on the mountains shine brightly. Morro flew up onto another ledge, waiting for Bansha and Soul Archer to follow him on the mech.

"How much longer is this going to take?" Morro asked impatiently as the mech finally pulled up beside him. "Wouldn't it be faster if I went on my own?"

"I know the best route to the top," Bansha said. "Unless you want to get lost on the Wailing Alps I suggest you wait."

Morro watched Bansha closely. She had gotten much more bold ever since they had started up the mountain. Didn't she realize that he was the one the Preeminent put in charge?

He was about to snap at her, but stopped, seeing a figure move out of the corner of his eye. "Ninja...Let's give them a little surprise, shall we?"

Morro smirked. Now he could test Bansha's loyalty to him.

Bansha paused, but eventually turned to face the ninja and screeched as loud as possible.

"This ghost is really starting to get on my nerves," Nya said just before the snow cascaded down.

"Hold...on…" Cole grunted.

The snow slowly started to come to a stop, now only being only a faint stream. Cole opened his eyes.

"Hey, look at that, we made it!"

"Speak for yourself," Kai grumbled. Cole looked down to see the others splayed on a ledge, a large pile of snow over them.

"It is truly fascinating," Zane mused as the others groaned around him. "It seems that your body, no longer being physical, allows solid objects to go through without affecting you."

Kai shivered. "Thanks for the science lesson Mr. Roboto."

Zane turned and wiped the snow off of Kai's parka, making Kai look up gratefully.

Another screech swept across the mountain along with a blast of wind, making the pine trees bend back dangerously.

"I have to go ahead," Cole said. "Otherwise Morro is going to keep pulling out the same trick."

"No! Cole, what are you doing?" Jay protested as Cole went forward. He expertly climbed up, using the ledges and footholds all while concentrating to make sure that his hands remained solid. "Ah, curse his mountain climbing skills!"

Before the ninja could stop him another heap of snow descended over them.

Kai coughed, spitting out snow. "We have to use airjitzu! The longer we stay here the more time we're giving Morro to get one more step ahead of us."

Kai closed his eyes. "Come on…" With his eyes closed Kai blocked out the torrent of snow hurdling over them. He thought of Lloyd on the dock. Lloyd was smiling and calling out to him. Kai waved and tried to walk across the dock to meet him, but suddenly the dock jumped back. Lloyd was pulled out further and further away from him. Kai started to run and held out his hand when a burst of wind went over him and Lloyd turned. He was still smiling, but his skin was green and his hair jet black. Morro gave him a taunting smirk and Kai gritted his teeth, feeling a burst of air circle over his feet, pushing him closer to the end of the dock and Morro.

Suddenly Kai was lifted from the mountain in a spiral of air.

"Kai!" Nya cried out and grabbed his hand.

They both flew up past the falling snow and landed on a nearby ledge.

Kai groaned and looked at his hands. "Did I just…?"

"You did airjitzu!" Nya said eagerly. "How did you manage to concentrate?"

After the initial shock passed Kai shook his head and grinned.

"We've been thinking about it too hard the whole time!" Kai looked down to Jay and Zane. "You just have to find the right motivation. Try to think of a memory that will push you forward. Something that gives you a feeling that you have to do this, no matter what."

Zane took a deep breath, looking past Kai and Nya to where Cole had just been climbing, determination in his expression. Suddenly he was in the prison chamber underground, at the lowest point in his life.

He had just discovered that they had dismantled Pixal and that discovery had turned his mind to new possibilities, as unrealistic as they might have seemed to a previous Zane that didn't have to face these terrible days of not knowing. If they had gotten Pixal, then was it that unlikely that they had found the other ninja? But then, just when he was ready to give up, the door opened and Cole had appeared with wide grin.

"It is time for me to support you brother."

In a burst of air Zane flew beside them. Once the vortex of air fizzled around him he held out his arms to balance himself.

"We can only do it in short increments, but it's certainly an improvement from last night," He said, smiling with Kai and Nya.

Jay tried to follow suit and jump forward, but he couldn't will himself to move as particles of snow started to fall down the length of the mountain. He swallowed and turned back.

"I can't do it-I'm too scared!"

"This isn't about Cole, is it?" Nya asked. When Jay looked down Nya groaned. "Jay, he isn't mad at you! He didn't even say anything about you when I talked with him earlier."

"It isn't that! It's just that he put so much at risk to get the scroll. I just can't find the enthusiasm to do it anymore. What memory am I supposed to think that can push me past that?"

Nya gave Jay a soft expression. "Jay...You know that Cole doesn't care about that. He cares about you being his friend. So you need to be there for him now. That's more important to him than you knowing how to do airjitzu."

"Nya…"

Nya. That was what had driven them both during that fight in the Tournament. Jay had wanted nothing more than to show Cole that he was the one that had fallen for Nya first and that he was the only one that could be with her. But as the fight progressed it became less about Nya and more about Cole. What was he doing? Fighting his best friend...and for what? This fight wouldn't prove anything. Nya would just get mad and say that it is was her choice and not the winner of this stupid macho battle. Besides, he was sick of this. He just wanted to laugh with Cole again, play video games with him, force him to watch his movies, just no more of this fighting…

Jay shot up in a spiral of air, far faster than either Kai or Zane. As fast as it came the air left him. Before he plummeted down Nya grabbed his arm and pulled him up. He looked nervous, but Nya gave him a warm smile.

"We don't have any time to waste," Kai said. "Come on!"

Following Kai (who was holding Nya) the three flew up in short spurts of air, stopping temporarily to catch their breath before beginning again.

Morro hissed, seeing that they were catching up. He turned back and suddenly grinned, seeing that the mountain dropped down into a sharp slope.

Morro looked to Soul Archer. "Distract them long enough so that they lose their footing. It would be a shame if they fell down and never came back up."

"Are you sure you're okay Kai? I can just climb if it's too much to carry me."

Kai shook his head. Although there were large beads of sweat on his forehead he was in too much concentration to notice the physical strains on his body.

"It'd be too much of a hassle if I stopped now. Besides, I can't just leave you here-"

An arrow with a ghastly green glow shot at Kai's feet at the ledge that he stopped at. He started to fall forward, but managed to regain his balance.

"Wow, that was a close one-"

Before he could continue Zane and Jay flew into him. Screaming, the four fell down the slope, ramming into one of the pine trees.

As they groaned Morro laughed and flew forward in a vortex of air.

Zane's eyes narrowed. "Two can play at that game Morro."

Darting under the pine tree Zane came up with several branches. His eyebrows knit in concentration Zane tied the branches together and held up his creation.

"It's rough, but it will be enough to act like a sled." Seeing the ninja's baffled expressions Zane tried his best to explain. "My father and I used to use the pine trees in Birchwood Forest to build slides. It was quite an enjoyable pastime."

Jumping onto the sled Zane started to propel it forward. "Well, here goes nothing."

The sled easily slid down the slope. While the ninja had to hold on tightly, Zane was able to easily to steer it. They were starting to quickly catch up to Morro, making Kai grin.

"Great thinking Zane! That's our resident nindroid."

Morro started to get nervous, seeing the sled creep up to him. He turned to Bansha and Soul Archer. "Don't just stand there-do something!"

Bansha laughed. "There's no need. Look."

"Um, Zane, aren't we getting a little too close to the edge?" Jay asked nervously.

Zane tried to stop the slide, but it continued to shoot down, eventually passing the three ghosts. "I'm unable to stop it! It's going out of my control!"

Just before the slide went off the edge a hook grabbed the snow and held the slide back. The slide flipped over and Jay slowly got up, an imprint of his face left in the snow.

"Nya?"

Nya was standing up, panting slightly with a grappling hook in her hand. "Hey, just because I'm the water ninja now doesn't mean that I can't still keep a few tricks from Samurai X."

Kai slowly got up from the snow. Looking up he saw Cole darting around Morro, hiding behind trees when Morro turned around.

Kai groaned. "What is he doing?"

Nya sighed, putting the grappling hook in a bag at her side. "I had a feeling he was going to try something like this."

As Morro made his way to the next ledge Cole closed his eyes. In a burst of air he leapt over Morro and fell on top of him.

The two fell back and rolled to where the ninja were. Morro groaned and rose his brow, seeing Cole on top of him.

"You? Since when were you a ghost?"

Cole pinned Morro's arms. "Since you sent us to Yang's temple to find another way to learn airjitzu."

The two grunted and Morro flipped Cole over. Lighting his hand with Lloyd's power Morro looked down to see Cole squirming under him. "Well, I can't say it was nice seeing you again, but at least I can put you out of our misery."

"Get off him!"

"Huh?"

In a jet of air Jay spun forward, knocking Morro off. Jay extended his arm out. "Don't you ever do something like that again!"

Slowly Cole broke out into a smile and grabbed his hand tightly. "I wouldn't dream of it Jay."

As Soul Archer flew down to support Morro Nya stepped in front of him, holding up her hands.

"Don't even think about it."

Soul Archer sneered. "And what's a little girl going to do to stop me?"

Nya closed her arms and crying out she shot a stream of water that Soul Archer narrowly missed. Soul Archer jumped back and watched Nya with fear in his eyes.

Bansha extended the mech's arm out to Morro.

"The portal will close soon! We must hurry."

Morro reached to grab the mech, but Kai shot forward, making Morro fall back. The two continued to fight, but Kai eventually managed to pin Morro into a headlock.

Morro hissed and tried to push back Kai back, but suddenly his expression softened and he relaxed into Kai's arms.

"Kai, I can only hold off Morro for a little bit. You need to get to the portal."

Kai's eyes widened. "Lloyd! You're okay!"

Lloyd smiled and he looked like he was about to say something, but he gritted his teeth, suddenly shaking.

"Kai, listen to me closely. Morro's after more than just being the green ninja. He's after a sword in Cloud Kingdom that the portal leads to. You can't let him get that sword. I don't know how, but it has something to do with the First Spinjitzu Master's tomb." Lloyd started to shake harder. "Kai, I-"

"It'll be okay Lloyd," Kai said, holding Lloyd closer. "We'll get you to the Bounty and we can put this whole thing behind us."

Lloyd shook his head weakly. "I-I only managed to get control temporarily. You have to go now, or the portal will close.

"Lloyd-"

"Go Kai! This is more important than me!"

Lloyd fell down and started to tremble on the snow. Kai went to reach for him, but Nya held him back.

"You heard him Kai. We have to go. We'll get him another time."

Kai watched Lloyd struggling to keep his dominance over Morro's possession. Turning back he swallowed and nodded, grabbing Nya's hand firmly before shooting up, Jay, Cole, and Zane following after him.

Bansha tried to go after them, but the portal shrank as they disappeared. She grabbed Zane's gi, but he pulled forward, making Bansha and the mech fall back, holding a bit of cloth in the mech's hands.

After a few more spasms Morro slowly got up. Looking at his hands he saw that they were transparent. Nearby, Lloyd was laying in the snow. His breathing was shallow and his blonde hair seemed paler than before. Before Morro could confront him he saw that the portal was moving past the Wailing Alps.

"No….NOOOOOOOO!"

Morro collapsed onto his knees and turned to Soul Archer and Bansha. "Prepare the cage...I'll show him what it means to defy me. I'll make him wish that he never resisted my possession."


	7. Green and Red

Chapter 7: Green and Red

 **Steampunk Wilson: I really loved the scenes where Lloyd breaks through to talk to Kai. In this chapter I'm building on the Morro and Lloyd possession dynamic a little more though to make those scenes shine out more. Hopefully it didn't end up as a mess :)**

 **ILoveCheetos: Welcome to the fandom! This is my first Ninjago story and I'm still overwhelmed by how nice and supportive everyone is. It's definitely a place to stick around in.**

 **RandomDragon2.0: I actually didn't add in the scene with Kai and Lloyd until the final phase of editing. I'm certainly glad I did though, people really seemed to like it. Last chapter was a big step for Cole in character development so far, so expect to see more of our favorite ghost!**

 **PrairieSkies: I really appreciate how you see the other details in chapters aside from the main events. It makes writing those scenes worth it :) The scene with Olga will definitely play a role later on. I don't let using OC's often, but I really wanted to give one of the other ghosts aside from a Morro a backstory.**

 **StoriesAreMagic: Although I don't like the pairing between Cole and Nya I definitely agree that their friendship is adorable! I wish that they would have more of those moments in the show since Nya isn't as close to the other ninja aside from her brother and Jay. Your comment with Lloyd made me laugh, I can imagine Kai yelling that dramatically as he jumped into the portal XD**

 **QueenoftheJordan: Thank you so much! It really makes me happy that you checked out this story. Also, you can blame the use of emojis on you. I rarely used them before but after talking to you I use them a lot more now :)**

"Thank you for the tea Olga," Misako said, taking the bag Olga had set out. "But we really need to get going. We aren't sure when the ninja will return, so we'll need to be ready with the Bounty. For what it was though, it was lovely seeing you again."

Olga wiped her eyes, but had a large smile. "Come back whenever you have the chance Koko. And tell those ninja to be careful. Just the thought of them getting hurt is too much for me to bare."

Misako hugged Olga. "I'll make sure to let them know."

After leaving Flinway with many villagers handing them gifts before waving goodbye Misako and Wu finally made their way down the mountain and arrived at the camp. Taking the supplies and gifts with them they came to the waiting Bounty at the mountain's base.

Wu walked onto the deck, taking the tea bag with him and was about to enter a room on the Bounty when Misako stood in front of him.

"Where are you going?"

"Um…" Wu held up the bag. "Going to make the delicious tea that Olga gave us?"

Misako grabbed the bag. "I have something I need to show you."

Wu followed Misako into the control room on the Bounty. Flipping on the light Wu saw several boards propped up in the room covered with maps of Ninjago. Misako walked to the board in the center of the room.

"These past few nights I've been going through potential areas in Ninjago where Morro's base could be," Misako said, pointing to the map. "I've been able to rule out a few areas. Using reports for when the 'green ninja' arrived at different cities when the ghosts attacked has narrowed my options, giving me a centerpoint. There is only one place where Morro could be that follows the amount of time it takes for him to arrive."

Misako locked her gaze with Wu. "I am going to find my son no matter what it takes."

* * *

Morro paced back and forth in the dark room. The ghosts watched him silently, guarding the cage that Lloyd was held in.

"I understand that you want to punish him, but refusing to give him food and water will only make you weaker when you possess him," Bansha said, watching Morro carefully.

Soul Archer scoffed. "Why do we continue to drag the boy with us? We could make far better use of our time without him. For example, perhaps getting to Cloud Kingdom to obtain the sword instead of just standing here!"

Morro stopped pacing and turned around suddenly, giving Bansha and Soul Archer a scathing look. "Don't you think that I'm aware of that!?" He shouted. His shoulders rising with his breath he eventually shook his head. He decided to switch tactics.

Morro put his hands behind his back and started to talk in a calm tone laced with mockery. "Regarding your question Bansha, isn't it necessary for me to make sure that I'm not giving Lloyd the means of resisting me? Giving him food would only strengthen his resolve against me." Morro turned to Soul Archer. "If I could I would go to Cloud Kingdom. Unfortunately, that's impossible now since the portal passed the Wailing Alps, seeing as that you don't seem to be aware of that fact. So, we'll have to change our strategy. I already sent some ghosts to wait at that flying ship of there's. If we can't go to Cloud Kingdom to obtain the sword, we'll just let them do the work for us and take it at the best opportunity. Is this understood? Or do I have to remind you of your place?"

"Forgive me Morro. My words got the best of me," Soul Archer said, bowing his head.

Bansha grumbled, but followed suit. "I...apologize as well."

Morro let out a small breath of relief. He had assumed his position of control again. Lloyd's resistance had been interfering not only with his own health, but the ghosts' willingness to listen to him as well. Everytime he had to leave Lloyd's body to rest he could see the flicker of distrust in their expressions. And Morro knew that distrust could grow into something far more menacing. The mission entrusted to him was too important to risk failure. Besides, he could only imagine what the Preeminent would do to him if he returned to the Cursed Realm with no real victory.

Morro focused his attention to the cage holding Lloyd, trying to hide his moment of weakness. Lloyd had collapsed in exhaustion after the trick he pulled at the Alps, his body still shaking from the blistering cold. Morro's mouth curved into a smile. Good. This was how it was supposed to be. But he couldn't risk Lloyd pulling anymore tricks on him. So if that was what Morro had to do to subdue him, so be it.

"It's time to remind you of your place."

Bansha reached to open the cage and before Lloyd could register what he was doing Morro dove into him. Lloyd shook, trying his best to resist Morro, but the days without food had taken effect and he eventually came to a place of stillness.

* * *

Lloyd groaned, opening his eyes. He was in the place of never ending blackness again. Trying his best to remain calm, Lloyd slowly stood up and tried to take in his situation. Although it had the same stretches of blackness it somehow seemed...off. The air was lighter instead and it seemed almost familiar as he struggled to walk through it. Lloyd came to a series of doors lined up in front of him. Unlike Morro the doors weren't hidden, but they instead seemed to present themselves, light pouring under the door sills invitingly.

Suddenly Morro shouldered past him, his face twisted in anger. He was reaching forward, opening the doors, peeking into them and hissing before turning to another.

As light poured through the blackness Lloyd stepped back, remembering how he had opened the door of Morro's memories. Even though he was tired a surge of anger fueled him to go after him as Morro flew by.

"Is possessing me not enough for you?" Lloyd asked, pushing past the sleepiness in his eyes. "You have no right to go through my memories like they're your property."

"Really?" Morro asked mockingly. As Lloyd tried to throw him back Morro easily shoved him back. Lloyd tripped back, his vision blurring as Morro placed his hand on the door. "Maybe you should have thought of that when you went through my memories. Consider this as repayment."

Morro opened the door, sunlight pouring through. Lloyd gritted his teeth and jumped forward, tackling Morro as they dove into the memory.

The two fell to a small house tucked between two large skyscrapers. Lloyd tried to hit Morro, but faltered as his feet reached the house's roof. He closed his eyes, bracing for the impact, but as he felt himself fall down gently he opened his eyes cautiously. Morro fell down beside him.

The house was cramped with the kitchen and living room connected and was rather messy with toys and books laid out, but the scene made Lloyd stop. He let his hands fall to his side as he took in the home that he had once lived in before Misako tore past the two and his immersion was broken.

Misako hurriedly grabbed the books on the small table in front of the couch and shoved them into a bag at her side. Several suitcases were laying on the floor. The door was open in front of the room, showing the morning sunrise and allowing a chilling wind to tear into the house.

"Mom?"

Misako stopped, about to reach for a toy on the floor. Lloyd was looking up at her with big eyes, still in his pajamas. As the wind went past him he shivered and pulled the blanket he was wearing closer around him.

"What time is it?" He asked, rubbing his eyes.

Misako shook her head and grabbed Lloyd. She placed a kiss on his forehead. "Thank goodness he didn't do anything to you."

"Him? Are you talking about dad?" Lloyd brightened. "Is he here? Can I see him?"

"We have to go Lloyd," Misako said, ignoring Lloyd's question. "Grab your suitcase and put everything you need in it."

Lloyd looked behind her nervously, seeing the suitcases scattered over the floor. "Where are we going?"

Lloyd had rarely gone on trips expect for the visits to Uncle Wu's monastery and occasionally to places across town because of his father's business trips.

Misako sighed. "It isn't 'we.'" Seeing Lloyd's confused expression Misako suddenly lost her patience. "Forget what I just said. Go get your things Lloyd."

When Lloyd didn't make any sign of moving Misako locked her gaze with Lloyd's wide eyes, placing her hands on his shoulders.

"Lloyd, it is for your own safety that you do as I say from now on. Do you understand?"

"But-"

"We have to leave now Lloyd."

"Okay, but what about my video games? And all of my comics? How are we going to carry them all-"

Misako suddenly released her hands and let them fall to her waist along with her gaze, clenching her hands into a fist. Taking a breath she looked up and faced Lloyd with the scariest expression he had ever seen. He took a step back as her eyebrows drew together and her eyes blazed in a flurry of emotions. She spoke in an icy tone, cold and calculating. "Lloyd, do you want me to leave you behind?"

They stood silent for a few moments until Lloyd nodded weakly. When she didn't move he slowly took a few steps backward before running into his room. As soon as he turned her face fell and she took a handful of items into her arms before turning to look to the burning sunrise. She closed her eyes.

They drove in silence for about an hour or so. Lloyd tried to look out the window, but in the rush that morning Misako didn't put his booster seat in. Instead, he had to content himself with the lights that washed over him as they drove past lampposts. Lloyd felt his breath leaving him as the car suddenly slowed to a stop and Misako turned around to face him, one of her hands still on the steering wheel.

Misako tried to make her voice light. "We're here."

Lloyd grabbed his stuffed suitcase and struggled to hold it as he fell out of the car. He looked up, pulling his suitcase with him to see a sign towering over him.

"Darkley's School for Bad Boys? What are we doing here?"

"It's a boarding school," Misako said, taking Lloyd's suitcase for him. As they walked to the entrance Misako continued to explain. "You'll be staying here for a while since I have...work to catch up on."

Before Lloyd could take in the meaning of her words the door opened, making Lloyd jump. A woman in her older years stood in the doorway, staring down at him almost as if she were appraising him before she broke into a smile, grabbing Misako's hand.

"Ah, come in! It's so good meet you Miss. Garmadon. I thought that I wouldn't be seeing you after a while. I'm glad to see that things all worked out." The woman shifted her attention back to Lloyd.

Lloyd felt a knot grow in his stomach as the woman smiled. He tried to hide behind Misako, but she pushed him forward.

The woman bent forward, placing her hand on Lloyd's chin and forcing his head up. "I've heard much about the you, son of Lord Garmadon," The woman turned to Misako. "But of course we will do our best to reform him from his evil origins."

Relief washed over Misako's face. "Thank you for accepting my application on such short notice. I tried calling other schools, but-" Misako's voice shook and the woman took her by the shoulder, directing her to a chair at the desk.

"Oh, come here, you poor woman," she said. "I know how it feels. Many parents have the same reaction when they come here. It's hard to accept that your child needs disciplinary work. Now, I know just the tea that will help you feel better as we go over the paperwork. Gene, why don't you go show Lloyd to his room?"

A boy with ginger hair walked forward, pushing up his glasses. "Why of course Miss. Darkley. Excuse me Miss Garmadon. Right this way."

Gene grabbed his hand forcefully while the two women talked, Miss. Darkley nodding at Misako's words, and practically dragged him out of the room.

"Ow!" Lloyd complained. "You don't have to pull so hard."

Gene laughed, walking into the hallway before opening one of the door's. Lloyd quickly walked in before he slammed it shut. "You really don't know where you are, do you?" Gene shook his head before pointing to the room. "These are the dorms. There's your bed."

As Lloyd put his suitcase by his bed a boy laying on his own watched him move, looking up from the top of his comic book and snickered.

"What's so funny?" Lloyd asked.

"Oh, it's nothing. I just read something pretty good."

Lloyd watched the boy suspiciously before a shrill bell rang, making him fall back on his bed.

"That's the supper bell," Gene said as Lloyd struggled to come back up, the blanket tangling his feet before he collapsed onto the floor. Gene laughed along with the black haired boy as he walked into the hallway. "I've never heard of someone failing to make the bed before. He won't last the week."

Lloyd didn't move from the floor until he heard Gene's voice fade as he turned into the hallway. Slowly he sat up and looked at the empty doorway, almost as if he were hoping that Misako would appear.

Why was this happening? His mom wouldn't leave him here, right? Before he could stop himself Lloyd sniffled. He quickly wiped his nose and stood up, running into the hallway.

"Hey guys, wait up!"

As he ran the scene suddenly came to a stop with the sound of a thud.

Lloyd opened his eyes and saw that Miss. Darkley has slammed a file onto the desk. He had been called to the office before class to the amusement of his classmates and was terrified to hear what Miss. Darkley had called him for. Miss. Darkley was a terrifying figure. She ruled the school with an iron fist, reducing even the bravest kids to tears if they broke the rules. Now she spun her teacher point and brought its tip to the top of the file before leaning forward. "Do you know what this means Lloyd?"

Lloyd squirmed uncomfortably in his seat. "Um...it's a report card?"

Miss Darkley's long nails trailed over the file before she opened it. "Let's see here. A F in Evil Potions. You refused to poison the bunny provided to you with school funds, saying, according to Mr. Alchem, that you 'were afraid of hurting it.'" Her eyes swept down on him.

Lloyd flinched. This was going worse than he could have imagined...

Miss Darkley's lips narrowed, turning the page. "A D in Evil Laughs, a C in Gym. It seems that the only subject you excelled in was General Mischief. Your pranks were quite exceptional. Unfortunately, that's not enough to give you a passing grade. You do know what this means, don't you?"

Lloyd swallowed. "Remediation?"

Miss Darkley laughed. "Garmadon, there's no hope in remediating you. You're a disgrace to the legacy of this school. We're training the next generation of evil masterminds. Not students of the First Spinjitzu Master."

Lloyd looked down, fiddling with his uniform as tears streamed down his face.

Miss. Darkley scoffed. "What a disappointment. I expected more from the son of Lord Garmadon."

Lloyd blinked back his tears, the name sending sadness through him as he slammed the chair back.

He imagined his father's scowling face as he went through the hallway, sidestepping traps that kids had laid out as he wiped his eyes.

"Really Lloyd? That's the best you can do? I was considering on letting you join my army, but now…". Garmadon shook his head before smirking, his teeth shining. "It seems that I was right in leaving you and your mother."

The illusion disappeared into smoke as Lloyd set his suitcase on his bed. He started to shove his belongings in, making Brad look up from his bed.

"You do realize that summer isn't until a month, right?" As Lloyd shook his head Brad stood up. "Lloyd?"

Lloyd threw the suitcase back, making Brad flinch. "I...I don't want to talk about it. Besides, it's not like you would care anyway. You'd just laugh like the others…"

The door threw open. Gene filed in with his lackies behind him and bowed to Lloyd, waving a sheet of paper in front of his face.

"Ready to be escorted out Miss. Garmadon?"

As the boys laughed Lloyd grabbed the paper. Gene clearly didn't expect this and tried to wrestle it back.

"Hey, that's official paperwork-"

Lloyd ripped the paper. "Whoops." The kids stared back at him in shock. Inside he felt nervous, but Lloyd knew that if he were to impress his father that he'd have to try a lot harder.

Gene tried to not let the blunder deter him. As Lloyd made his way to the door Gene called after him. "And where are you going to go? Let's face it, we all know that you're going to be crying back to your mommy. There's a 100% probability."

"I don't care about my mom anymore," Lloyd said, turning around. Their shocked reactions urged Lloyd to go forward. "And I'm not going home. I'm going to prove my evil nature!"

Silence. Then the room erupted into laughter.

"You?" Gene wheezed, grabbing his stomach. "Prove your evil nature?"

"What are you going to do?" Brad asked, transfixed.

"Oh come on Brad, don't tell me that you believe that nonsense," Gene said. "You're the one who put fire ants in his bed. Don't tell me that you of all people are defending him."

Brad felt their stares on him. Brad's eyes locked with Lloyd and he almost went forward before he heard Gene clear his throat loudly. Brad shook his head and laughed.

"I bet he doesn't even have a plan."

All eyes turned to Lloyd. Lloyd faltered.

"W-well, I haven't gotten to that part yet…"

Gene snorted and patted Brad's shoulder. "I knew that you would choose the right friends Brad."

Lloyd watched Brad, his mouth open before he turned back, marching to the exit. He didn't need anyone anyway. He'd show them if his name wasn't Lloyd Garmadon!

Lloyd donned his black robe and pulled the hood over his hair. Laughing confidentially he stood on the fountain in Jamanakai Village, raising as his hands as villagers turned to watch him.

"I demand to have all of your candy! Anyone who refuses will face the wrath of Lloyd Garmadon! Muhahahaha!"

It wasn't long before dragons appeared in the sky and Lloyd felt his will falter. After a rather humiliating battle the ninja who had gained quite the reputation by defeating the skeletons had apprehended Lloyd. Just to make things worse, they hung him on a storefront sign and stood back to admire their progress.

Lloyd squirmed as the villagers pelted fruit at him. "You just made me your nemesis. Mark my word, you'll pay for this!"

Smiling, Zane walked to the food cart and gave the woman a handful of coins. He swept the candy up and handed them to the ninja.

"Next time, try paying for your candy," Cole said, smirking.

Kai grinned. "Crime doesn't pay muchacho. You can take that to the bank."

Jay made a show of sniffing his cotton candy before taking a bite out of it. "Mmm, cotton candy."

Lloyd growled and tried to free himself from the sign, but the robe held on tightly. He groaned and looked down as the ninja high fived one another.

He felt a painful twist in his stomach as the ninja laughed and the issue suddenly wasn't his embarrassment, but his envy of their friendship. He would make them see him as a threat and then he would be the one laughing.

The image swirled to the snowy mountain where Lloyd had found the Hypnobrai Tribe, then the Fangpyre, and after their betrayal, the Anacondrai.

It was humiliating to see himself when he was younger and trying to impress his father, not only in that it was revealing his past to his enemy but also in that it forced him to recall the painful realization that his father was now dead and in the Cursed Realm. Lloyd stood still, watching the scenes while trying to keep a brave face, refusing to let Morro get the best of him. He knew that Morro was trying to get a reaction out of him, so he watched silently and kept his face neutral.

He could tell that it was bothering Morro. Each time Morro found something amusing he turned to Lloyd and groaned in frustration when Lloyd refused to show his emotion. Lloyd clenched his fists, waiting for it to be over.

Then the wall of lava shot up in front of Lloyd and Morro. The same scene with Garmadon trying to save Lloyd sent a knot into his chest, but he managed to stay still. It wasn't until Kai ran across the staircase along the volcano and Morro perked up in interest that Lloyd felt himself trembling.

"Is that the red one?" Morro asked, trying to see past the smoke and lava.

Lloyd jumped forward and tried to push Morro back. Morro stumbled, surprised at his sudden movement.

"You're not seeing this," he protested, his energy suddenly coming back. They both nearly fell off the thin staircase that circled around the pit of lava in front of them.

Morro kicked Lloyd back and craned his head back just in time to see Kai run to the younger Lloyd in the pool of lava. He watched in interest just before Lloyd twisted his head back and forced him back.

Lloyd panted above him. Morro's lips curved into a smile.

"Hmm, so that's why he gets so worked up every time he sees me possessing you."

A flicker of emotions went over his face. Morro smirked, knowing that he had found the right memory. As Lloyd looked to see Kai fly up holding his younger self the scene changed.

Kai smirked, wearing oven mitts to block Lloyd's punches. They were training in the small apartment they had found in Ninjago City, putting all of their focus in preparing Lloyd for the Final Battle. Kai fell back into the oven and Lloyd groaned.

Kai shook his mitts. "Wow grasshopper, you're not even ready to face my pinky-toe."

Wu smiled at the exchange. "I see that the student has become the teacher. You will learn fast Lloyd, with lessons from the four ninja."

"Great!" Cole said. "Now that that lesson is over, how about some target practice? On Kai!"

Kai's expression fell as Lloyd grinned evilly.

Lloyd let Morro go and the fell back. As a flurry of emotions went over him the memories of Kai continued to blur past.

Kai sighed, and ran his hand through his hair. They were standing at the dock by the tea shop, the waves crashing beneath their feet. Kai turned back to Lloyd. "No, it's fine. I know that I probably alarmed you when I took Chen's staff and said all those things. There is some part of me that feels that way, but I'm not going to let it take control. It's just part of me. So, I'm not letting up on my promise on helping you." Kai threw his arm around Lloyd's shoulder. "I'm here for you green machine. So, what are we planning on doing?"

Lloyd smiled. The sun was setting over the water and at the moment he felt more at ease than he ever had after his father's sacrifice. It almost felt like nothing could go wrong as long he was by his best friend…

Then the scene shifted to the monastery. The storm brewed over them as Morro was hovered above Lloyd, holding Kai over the mountain's edge.

"If you want your friend back you will do as I say. Otherwise, he falls to his doom."

"Lloyd, don't do it!" Kai shook, trying to get free. "He's up to something bigger. Don't give in!"

As thunder rumbled in the distance Lloyd trembled. "I can't lose you Kai. Not after what happened to my father…"

The scenes suddenly all faded. They were back in the blackness, the consuming, never ending length of nothingness. The pain of his situation hit him full force and Lloyd closed his eyes, trying to salvage the memories of his friends. Morro's face twisted into something unrecognizable, almost inhuman.

"Oh...OH. That's great! Telling you he would protect you right before I possess you!" Morro turned down to look at Lloyd, who was looking at the stretch of blackness, his eyes wide in emotion. "Don't look so sad Lloyd, it's not like you'll ever see him again, at least if I have anything to say about it."

"I...I'm not going to be under your possession forever. You have to let me go eventually," Lloyd said, although his voice wasn't that convincing.

Morro laughed. "And why would I allow that, after all the trouble I went through to get to the memory that bothered you the most?"

Lloyd couldn't find the energy to protest. He closed his eyes, but he still couldn't block Morro's laugh behind him.

What if Morro was right? Would he really never see Kai again? Would he never have another day with the ninja, listening to Jay's jokes, training and laughing with Cole, eating Zane's cooking, or seeing Nya get excited over anything machine related? And what about his mom or Uncle Wu?

Morro laughed. "It seems that my work here is done. I hope that you like this place because it's all you're going to know from now on."

And just like that Lloyd was left back in the darkness. The memories of his friends disappeared around him and he felt more hopeless than he ever had in his entire life.

* * *

The ninja shot out of the portal and landed onto an expanse of clouds, bouncing up and down a few times before sinking into them.

Jay grabbed his head and groaned. He stood up on the clouds and out of the corner of his eye saw that the portal was closing behind them. "Wait! Don't leave us here!" His hand swept the area where the portal was before it disappeared into a burst of light, his hand sweeping over nothing. "Great, now we're stuck! What are we supposed to do now?" Jay asked turning to face the others. He suddenly took a few steps back, seeing what was in front of them. "Um, you guys might want to look at this…"

The ninja gasped, finding themselves in front of a massive building with a large staircase. Around them several towers and temples rose up on patches of clouds. Flying ships circled between them, carrying people who were wearing brown robes.

"What is this place?" Cole asked in wonderment.

"Lloyd said something about Morro trying to get to Cloud Kingdom. I guess that's where we are," Kai said, walking around at the base of the stairs. Suddenly a monk appeared in front of him, making Kai jump back. "What the-"

"We predicated your arrival," the monk said. He was an older man with gray hair and a warm smile. He reached out his hand and Kai took it hesitantly. "My name is Fenwick. I'll be your guide today."

"You know who we are?" Nya asked as the monk reached forward to shake all of their hands.

"Why of course. Just because we're in separate realms doesn't mean that we aren't aware of your accomplishments. In fact, you could say that we're partly responsible for those accomplishments."

Seeing the ninja's confused expressions Fenwick continued. "Perhaps it would be easier to show you. Come."

As they came to the top of the stairs Fenwick opened the large doors and stepped back to let the ninja walk in. The room was filled with rows of desks and bookshelves, students scribbling away on rolls of parchment. Other monks stood watch along the walls. One of them, a young boy with orange hair, immediately looked away as he caught eye contact with the ninja.

Jay watched the orange-haired boy look around nervously and leaned over to Cole as they walked in. "Is this place creeping you out as much as it is to me right now? Because in terms of creepiness levels, this place takes the cake."

Cole stopped walking and looked to his stomach. "This place is giving me bad vibes. I can't really describe it-it's like I have this gut feeling," Cole responded. His eyes trailed over to one of the students and their parchment. "Hey, they're writing everything that we're saying!"

The student jumped as Cole leaned over him. "W-well yes, it's my duty. I am the writer for the Ninjago realm after all."

Nya grabbed the parchment and gasped. "It isn't just since we got here. There's pages for when we were at Flinbeck and you were at Yang's temple. It's like an entire transcript!"

"It's a set of predictions for the future," Fenwick said, nodding to the students. "Sixteen writers for the sixteen realms."

Zane's eyes widened. "There are fifteen realms outside of Ninjago? If that's the case, then the green ninja and final battle prophecy-"

"Originated here, yes," Fenwick replied. "All events that happen in the realms, all that is said, is first written here. It cannot be rewritten or changed." Fenwick turned to Nya. "Because of that, it would be greatly appreciated if you give our scribe his parchment back young lady."

"Oh! Of course, sorry about that," Nya said, smiling nervously as she gave the parchment back to the seething scribe.

"Wait, so you're saying that you're the ones responsible for releasing Morro?" Kai asked, pointing his finger at Fenwick. "If it weren't for you Lloyd would be with us! My parents would have never have gotten killed!"

A few monks started to circle around Kai, but Fenwick held up his hand. "If it would have been our choice of course we would have never written those things! But as the overseer of the realms we must be neutral. We can't pick sides. Besides, it was never our intention to release Morro from the Cursed Realm. He somehow defied destiny. Everything has been off course since then. Do you think that it was planned for Cole to turn into a ghost? For you to even come to Cloud Kingdom in the first place?"

"Okay, we get it, you make creepy predictions," Kai conceded, stepping back. "Then you know that we need a sword here, right?"

"Of course," Fenwick said, leading the ninja to the front of the room.

Jay and Zane stayed back, Jay hovering over the scribe. He lifted his hand and groaned when he saw that the scribe had written it before him. Jay took a breath and screamed in the scribe's face.

"Hah! I got you on that one, didn't I?" Jay looked over and the scribe's shoulder and deflated. "Man, this guy is impossible to beat, right Zane? Zane?"

Zane was sitting on the floor, leaning against the desk and mumbling to himself, rocking back and forth. "How could I not be aware of something like this before? It has been dictating everything and yet we were completely unaware of its existence!"

Jay pulled on Zane's arm and lifted him up. "Okay buddy, let's go, small steps..."

As Jay and Zane walked to the front to join the others Fenwick swept his hands dramatically as two monks went to the display case in the front of the room and pulled off the cloth.

"The sword of sanctuary," Fenwick said. As the cloth was pulled off a golden sword winked back at them, showing their reflections. "You see, there's the problem. The sword predicts everything that is to come. We depend on it for writing our predictions."

"Wait a minute..." Kai said, looking into the sword's reflection. It showed one of the monks taking off the cover to grab the sword and throwing it into Fenwick's waiting hand. "They're planning on taking the sword for themselves!"

Nya grabbed Fenwick's hand as the student threw the sword. "Planning on going somewhere?"

"I got it!" Cole said, jumping over the desks and spilling ink and paper onto the floor. He held up his hand, but the sword went through and continued to slice through the air. "Okay, that did not go as I expected."

As their attention was focused on the flying sword a student came behind Nya and tried to throw her off of Fenwick. Although it was easy to stop the student as her attention was focused on the him Fenwick managed to run past her and grab the sword as another student threw it to him.

Fenwick grinned, holding the sword tightly. "Did you not think that we weren't prepared for such tricks? We saw it all in the sword prior to your arrival. That is why there must be in order in society!"

The ninja tried to intercept him, but each time they came close to him Fenwick saw their movement in the sword and easily blocked them and threw them off balance.

Zane panted, skidding back into a desk. "With all of our moves predicted there is little chance of us succeeding in this battle."

"Then we just have to beat those odds," Cole said, nodding to Fenwick. "He may be able to predict our moves, but that doesn't mean that he can stop us if we attack all at once."

As the ninja rushed forward Fenwick turned to his students. "There are more of us than them. End this as it was written."

The students rushed forward. Although they were small several of them attacked each ninja, latching onto them.

Jay shouted as one bit into his arm. "Ow! This isn't fair! What kind of battle tactics do you call these?"

Kai groaned as the students swarmed over him. "Ugh, I wish we could spinjitzu through these brats! We don't have time for this!"

Suddenly the student with orange hair crept behind Kai. He pushed Kai back, making Kai fall onto one of the desks. Raising himself over Kai the student rose his hand. However, instead of striking Kai he leaned forward and whispered into his ear.

"I'm not here to fight-I want to help you. Throw me at Fenwick. It'll distract him enough so that he won't look at the sword, giving you a chance to grab it. Please, you need to believe me."

Kai flipped up and grabbed the student by the collar, raising his fist, but faltered at seeing the student's expression. Something about his eyes, full of confidence, as well as his bowl-cut reminded him of Lloyd when he was younger. Kai lowered his fist.

"Fine. I'm trusting you kid-you better not give me a reason to go after you once this over. Hey, Fenwick!"

Fenwick, who was smirking at the students holding back the ninja, didn't notice the sword's reflection of Kai throwing the student. He fell back as the student rammed into him, the sword falling out of his hand and clattering onto the floor.

Kai grabbed it and turned to the others. "Come on, let's get out of here!"

The ninja ran to the door, but were unable to pry it open.

Jay groaned. "They must have locked the door after we came in!"

"Stand back guys," Cole said, raising his hand. "I'm going to try something."

"What are you talking about-" Jay faltered as Cole disappeared into the lock. With a click the door unlocked and Cole flew out, pushing the door open.

"Good thinking Cole!" Nya said as they ran out, closing the door behind them. "But that door isn't going to hold them back forever."

Zane looked up and saw a skiff float past them. Taking in a breath he shook his head, trying to clear his thoughts from his horror of Cloud Kingdom's power and focus on the situation at hand. "Actually, I believe that we've found our ride."

Spinning up with airjitzu Zane landed in the skiff. The others started to follow after him, but Kai stopped, feeling a hand tug at his gi.

Kai flinched back, seeing the student with orange hair looking up at him. "What? But you were just with Fenwick-"

"I needed to tell you something, so I had to follow you," he replied breathlessly. "Please, call me Nobu. It'll be easier to communicate that way."

The door rattled as the students pounded on it and Kai shook his head.

"Look, we don't have time to take us with you. Just go back to the other students and try to pretend that nothing happened."

"Kai, if he followed us here he then it must be important," Nya said, putting her hand on his shoulder. "Maybe we should listen to what he has to say."

"I can't take you both up," Kai said. "How are we going to get into the boat?"

"Leave that to me," Nobu said. Putting his hand over his mouth he whistled loudly.

Zane, Cole, and Jay were thrown forward as the skiff flew down. Nobu smiled as he stepped in, ignoring their bewildered expressions.

"I'm only in training, but I can control some of the skiff's power," he explained as Kai and Nya followed after him.

As the skiff lifted up Nobu lifted his hands. The scenery around them suddenly started to change, showing the image of a dark cave.

"This is the tomb of the First Spinjitzu Master," Nobu said as the ninja looked in wonderment. "It is here where the realm crystal was buried, and what Morro is after."

The skiff traveled into an image of a large, shining crystal before the image dissipated. "It is a powerful artifact that allows the user to jump between the different realms. But the First Spinjitzu Master knew that it's power was too great, and so he buried it with him in his resting place, hoping that only a spinjitzu master would ever come to use its power for the greater good."

As the illusion disappeared and they returned to the scenery of Cloud Kingdom, passing temples and other boats, Jay looked to Nobu in confusion.

"Okay, so I get what the realm crystal is, but why does Morro want with it? It's not like he can beat us by jumping between realms," Jay asked.

Nobu looked to the ninja with a grave expression. "The realms are meant to be separated. They were never intended to cross over. But Morro and the other ghosts hope to release the Preeminent, or the Cursed Realm as you know it, into your world."

Cole's eyes widened. "Then that would release all of the worst baddies into Ninjago! I've heard stories of the Cursed Realm as a kid. Only the worst of the worst get sent there."

"What I don't get is why you helped us," Kai said, looking at Nobu in suspicion. "What are you really trying to do?"

Nobu nodded to the sword in Kai's hand. "It was the sword. It...it showed me helping you during the battle when I caught a glimpse of it. I wanted to help you too of course-Fenwick told us all what was going to happen before you got here and I knew it was wrong. I just didn't think that I would do anything about it."

Nobu looked at Kai seriously. "The sword of sanctuary will be vital in revealing the location of the tomb and getting through it's obstacles. You must not let Morro get his hands on it."

Kai looked at the sword in his hands. Ever since he had lost his ability to wield fire he had felt so powerless fighting against Morro and his ghosts. But with the sword he might have the chance to fight back. He could have a chance in getting Lloyd back. Kai's grip around the sword tightened.

Suddenly, an image flickered across the sword. Nya leaned forward.

"Just like I thought, it looks like they find a way to get past the door," she said, her voice filled with worry. "But the portal closed when we got here. How are we going to get back?"

"There is another way to enter and exit Cloud Kingdom," Nobu said. "Only students and those who live here know about it though."

Jay leaned over the skiff. "Well, you might want to hurry up because they're coming out right now!"

"Hold on!" Nobu shouted as the skiff zoomed forward. "We're almost there-"

The skiff was suddenly thrown back by a large, hairy humanoid monster. It held the skiff with relative ease and howled at the ninja, who clung onto the skiff's side.

"Good job Nimbus!" Fenwick said as the creature threw the ninja off and to the waiting students. "Now, could you grab the troublemaker of this mess? Good boy."

Nimbus grabbed Nobu and started to shake him, pulling at him like he was a toy.

The ninja jumped into fighting positions. Fenwick shook his head, clicking his tongue.

"Why do you defy us? By fighting us you are trying to beat destiny."

Kai looked into the sword's reflection. It flashed an image of Nimbus throwing his arm down onto the ninja and sending them off the patches and to the ground below.

"Then it looks like Morro's not the only one who can do it," Kai said, holding up the sword. "Give it up. Your time of controlling destiny is over." Kai turned back to others. "Jump back!"

Nimbus's arm began to fall to the clouds. Fenwick held up his hand.

"Nimbus, wait-"

Nimbus's arm crashed down and tore a hole in the clouds. The students screamed and scrambled to move out of the gaping hole's way. As Nimbus stared in confusion Nobu pulled himself free and ran to the ninja. Kai grabbed him and looked to Nya helplessly before Jay offered his hand to her.

Using airjitzu they flew onto the skiffs, jumping over them as Nimbus howled after them.

"A direction would be nice," Cole said, narrowly avoiding Nimbus's sweeping arm. "Cause we're kind of just going all over the place right now."

"It's at the tower in the middle. The Winding Path," Nobu replied, pointing forward.

Kai looked to the tower. It was massive and adorned with statues of dragons and illustrations of Ninjago's history. At the top he could see a glass covering in the center of the roof.

"Got it, hold on!" Kai said before landing on the tower. The others followed after him and breathed heavily, still a little unused to doing airjitzu.

Cole pried off the covering and looked down to the spiraling vortex. "It's there alright. The question is, who's going first?"

As the ninja looked at each other Nya groaned.

"Fine, but if this kills me then this is your fault. Here goes nothing…"

Closing her eyes Nya jumped down and disappeared into the portal. Kai looked into the sword and let out a sigh of relief.

"She made it out okay…"

Zane stared at the sword. "There's something I quite don't understand. How was Cloud Kingdom's predictions any different from the sword? We haven't changed destiny at all if the sword continues to show us future events."

"But you have!" Nobu exclaimed. The ninja looked back in shock. Nobu looked down, embarrassed. "When we wrote events we set them in stone. There was no way to change them. They were fixed, unmoving. But the sword is flexible. With it, you can create different futures by choosing to defy it or follow its path. That's why Fenwick didn't want you to have it."

Nimbus's howl focused the ninja back to the portal.

"Well, it's now or never," Cole said, looking down. "Let's go Jay."

"Wait, but I'm not ready-"

Jay screamed as Cole grabbed his hand and they fell into the portal.

Zane turned to Kai. "Are you ready Kai?"

Kai tore his glance from the sword and looked to Nobu. "You're staying here?" He asked in bewilderment, having seen the sword's reflection. "You'll get pulverized if you stay back-"

Zane put his hand on Kai's shoulder. "It was his decision Kai. Earlier I saw that the sword showed him coming with us. Perhaps...he wants to write his own destiny."

Nobu said nothing and Kai felt his resolve waver. He couldn't believe this. How could he get so close to a kid he had just meant?

"Be careful, alright?" Kai said. "If you need anything, don't hesitate to use the portal and come find us."

Nobu gave the two a bright smile. "I'll be fine. I can't run away from this after all, that won't change anything. I'm going to reform this place and change it to what it should have always been. Thank you for showing me my true path."

Before they could respond Fenwick's voice rose over them. He was traveling on a skiff, holding his arms out.

"You must stop! You are making a terrible mistake!"

"Good luck," Nobu said before pushing the two down the portal.

As the ninja screamed, falling down the portal, they came to the mountain and the waiting Destiny's Bounty.

Kai groaned and looked up, seeing Misako's feet in front of them.

Proudly, she held up a map as she looked to all of the ninja. "We found Morro's base: the Temple of Light."


	8. The Resting Place

Chapter 8: The Resting Place

 **I want to apologize for how long this took me to get out. In theory, it shouldn't take me that long to make chapters since I have the rough draft of the story finished, but looking back at this one I wasn't happy with it. I started rewriting it, but found it especially difficult to get the right words out. I'll be honest, I struggled a lot with this one. I hope that it was worth the wait. Chapters should be more consistent in the future!**

 **lloydskywalkers: Thank you so much for your review! I'm still blown away by how much time you put into it. I loved exploring the Kai and Lloyd dynamic by having Morro going through Lloyd's memories and using his memories of Kai to break him down. I love that in writing this story I have been able to explore the possession more by having a back and forth between Morro and Lloyd and the shared memories they have of each other. And, I'm not going to lie, I adore the Kai and Lloyd friendship to death XD**

 **Steampunk Wilson: I'm glad to hear that you liked the Morro and Lloyd scene! I always have a hard time writing them because I'm putting Lloyd through so much more pain than what he had to face in the show XD. Hopefully this chapter lives up to your exceptions despite how late it is.**

 **Guy: Don't worry, your review was understandable. You can write in English really well :D. Thank you! I love exploring the villain and hero dynamic between Morro and Lloyd!**

 **Guest: Things are definitely starting to fall into place. This chapter is a bit massive, so hopefully it lives up to your expectations!  
**

 **StoriesAreMagic: I'm glad that you picked up on Misako bit in the last chapter. I wanted to show her abandoning Lloyd at Darkley's in the beginning and her trying to rescue him to show how far she's come as a character and caring for him :D. I loved writing the Kai and Nobu interaction-I like to think that Kai can't help but extend his brotherly love to people once he opens himself up.**

 **RandomDragon2.0: I loved writing little Nobu! I started writing him as a more innocent child character, but he started to become his own thing as I kept going. But hey, that makes him more interesting in the end :D.**

 **WindNinja333: Nobu is the only member of Cloud Kingdom that seems have a conscience XD. Once again, I apologize for the wait. I have ideas for other stories I'd like to do, so I hope to finish this story this summer.**

 **allisonvonarx: I hope that you enjoy this chapter! Sorry about the wait!**

"They were definitely here," Nya said as she examined the supplies hastily left by the ghosts in their retreat. "The real question is _where_ did they go."

The ninja walked through the temple. Light poured through the massive windows on the side, making the silver bell in the center glow.

Jay stepped onto the lightning symbol on the floor, the others following suit on their respective symbols in the four corners of the room. "Doesn't this all feel like a long time ago? Figuring out who the green ninja is, the final battle…"

"It isn't all the same," Kai said, staring at his symbol intensely before looking up to the three. "Before we depended on Lloyd to fulfill the prophecy. Now he's depending on us."

The four looked to one another, understanding in their expressions. It was something that they were all attached to as the protectors of the green ninja. At that moment they felt more connected to one another than ever.

Nya huffed and sat on one of the boxes the ghosts left. "We went through all of this to find the base and Morro was still one step ahead of us!"

"Ooh, someone's getting feisty," Cole said as the ninja left the symbols and walked to the temple's entrance.

Nya pulled back her hair, embarrassed. "I can't help it. I have the ability to stop Morro and all of his friends, but I haven't really been on the missions until now. I thought that this was my chance, but..."

Wu's wooden staff echoed along the temple's floor. "You are mistaken. It is not us who treads behind, but Morro. His retreat shows that he is paranoid that they we will win before he could can gain access to the realm crystal."

Misako crossed her arms and looked down. "I see your point Wu, but I suppose that I led myself to believe that Lloyd would be here. I...I suppose that I will have to wait a bit longer."

Wu placed his arm around Misako's shoulder. She looked up gratefully.

Zane suddenly perked up in the silence, holding out his arm as a small panel flipped open. "I'm getting a signal from the Bounty's security system. Someone's on board."

"Who is it?" Kai asked, leaning forward. "Is it Morro?!"

"Pixal is tapping into the security cameras. I will need a moment to switch my vision." Zane reached his hand to his ear and switched a knob, making his eyes change from blue to yellow.

Zane searched the deck. As his eyes traveled over he thought he saw a figure jump off the railing and disappear. Shaking his head he looked to the right and saw Ronin in front of the camera.

Ronin waved. "Meet me on the deck. Don't worry, I haven't stolen anything...yet."

"How-"

"Sorry, I can't hear you. The signal must be breaking up."

Ronin's hand went over the camera and the vision turned into static. Zane shook his head, returning to the present.

Cole's hand was on his shoulder. "Who was it?"

"It was Ronin. But what would he want with us? What is he hoping to attain?"

"Ronin?!" Nya jumped to her feet and growled. "He couldn't have picked a worse time to get on my nerves."

Before they could stop her Nya ran out the temple and skidded to a stop at the mountain's edge.

There, where she had anchored the Bounty, was Ronin, laying down casually and reading a magazine with Lloyd's face on it. When he saw Nya and the others he looked up and turned the page. "I know that you guys were mad at me for stealing things behind people's backs, but honestly, if they believe this bologna then I say they deserve what's coming to them."

Nya held out her hands in front of her. "Ronin, I'm giving you five seconds to get off the Bounty."

Ronin smirked as Nya stared at him with determination. "Now, isn't that cute."

Before Ronin could process what was happening a jet of water shot out from Nya's hands. He sputtered and took his hat off to block the stream of water.

Cole watched Nya's progress with a smile, but was secretly glad that he was at a safe distance from the shooting water. "Nya, you learned faster than any of us did with the golden weapons. Don't be so hard at yourself, I bet that you'll kick the most baddies out of all us the next time any ghosts decide to come our way."

Nya saw that the ninja were glowing at her with pride, especially Jay who seemed to be in too much awe to say anything. As the stream drizzled to a stop Nya grinned at Wu and Misako. "Well, I learn from the best."

Ronin coughed, his eyes wide. " _That_ was the training you were skipping out on when you were in the shop? Geez, and here I thought it was music lessons or something."

Ronin flipped over the railing and landed on the mountain. "Look, I'm not here to stop you. No tricks this time."

Jay shook himself him out of his daze and laughed sarcastically. "Oh yeah, I believe that. It's not like you gave the scroll to Morro and forced us to go to Yang's temple which made Cole turn into a ghost!"

Ronin's eyes flicked over to Cole. Jay's shoulders were rising with his breath. "You mean in that Temple of Airjitzu place? I thought it was just as much of a scam as my business."

"Enough!" Wu shouted. The ninja stopped giving Ronin accusatory glances and turned to Wu in confusion. "We should listen to what Ronin has to say."

Jay looked at Wu helplessly. "But Sensei-"

Ronin considered Wu before turning to the ninja. "Your Sensei's right. I know that you don't want to listen to me now, but you're going to need me if you want to get to the tomb."

Nya's eyes narrowed. "How do you know that?"

"Well, you weren't exactly being quiet when you were talking about it on the Bounty."

Ronin nodded to Kai and the sword of sanctuary. "You were talking about how the location was underwater when you held it up to the scroll. You won't be able to get underwater without me."

The ninja continued to look at him with suspicion. Ronin sighed. "Look, do you think that I wanted to give them bad guys the scroll? I know that something bigger is going on. All everyone talks about in town is the green ninja saving the city from the same ghosts that attacked me. And if I know anything about Soul Archer, then I know that there's more to this. Just let me help you before all of Ninjago is blown to bits, alright? It'd be bad for business."

Zane turned to Wu. Something passed between the two before Zane turned back to Ronin. "I...I think that we should believe him," Zane said. "There is genuine care in his voice. Regarding that he was the one to sell me to Chen, I believe that out of everyone I have the most authority in saying this."

"Well, if Zane trusts him, then I will too," Cole said. He eyed Ronin nervously. "But, um, how exactly are you going to make sure that water doesn't get on any of us?"

Ronin smirked before whistling. As R.E.X flew towards them Ronin patted his hand on the vehicle affectionately. "I've been busy since the last time you've seen me. I installed an underwater function on her. Not even a drop of water will get on her with these steel plates I hammered in." Ronin opened the door. "Unfortunately, there isn't enough room in here for all of you. One of you is going to have to sit out."

After a moment of silence Misako spoke. "I will stay back with the Bounty."

"Are you sure?" Wu asked. Usually calm and thoughtful, there was a surprising level of emotion in his voice. "You were the one to decipher the clues for the tomb. With everything going on you have a right to come. I will stay back."

Misako offered a small smile. "Wu, I can see the emotion in your face whenever we talk about the tomb. You have the right to see your father's resting place. I will communicate with Zane at the Bounty's control center to give you the clues."

Ronin forced a smile. "Then we better get going. You can follow us with the Bounty so you'll be ready for us when we come back up."

R.E.X teetered to the side as the ninja scrambled in. Shoulders and aeroblades were pressed up against one another as the ninja shifted, trying to find some comfort as they were nearly pressed up against the glass of the front window. Ronin whistled over their grumbles as he took the steering wheel.

Kai tried to grab the sword from his sheath, but each time he moved to grab it his arms hit Zane and Nya on either side. He groaned. "Could you make some room here?"

"Oh, my apologies Kai," Zane said. As he moved his elbow up to allow Kai to grab the sword he whacked Jay, whose head hit the glass.

Jay rubbed his head. "Hey, watch it-" Jay's voice faltered as his eyes wandered over the gleaming set of controls that Ronin was fiddling with.

"Looks like someone has a crush," Cole teased, elbowing Jay.

"I wasn't staring at it-I was just...admiring its craftsmanship," Jay protested, leaning back and crossing his arms as Cole smirked at him.

Suddenly R.E.X roared to life and Cole tensed. Gripping the controls Ronin shot the ship down, gliding it over the water.

"I'm setting R.E.X's underwater mode," Ronin explained. Just before R.E.X plunged down two propellers shot out from the side and a periscope on the top flipped up. "I'd hold on if I were you."

Once they were submerged Ronin flicked a light on, illuminating the cool depths of the ocean through the window. As the ninja breathed in amazement at the sight of a school of fish swimming by and long trials of kelp brushing against the window Nya scoffed.

"And I wonder where you got the parts to make this possible," Nya said sarcastically as she pulled up an imaging device. It was a small and compact version of the map from Destiny's Bounty that could easily show any location from Ninjago. Being their organizer for so long she had practically memorized all of the areas by heart. As Nya looked over the sword of sanctuary that reflected the image of the tomb Nya noticed how tightly Kai was gripping the sword. In his other hand Kai was holding up the scroll. It was very faint, but Nya could see that the paper was slightly shaking.

Nya put her hand on Kai's and gave him a comforting smile. "According to this we don't have that far to go. It's definitely remote enough to be our tomb."

Kai took a breath, staring at the sword, avoiding his gaze on the window which showed the cool depths of water beyond the glass. For a second he imagined the glass breaking and the water flooding in. Kai shook his head and looked to the others.

"This is it," he said. "This our chance to fight back and prevent Morro's plan before he can even get here. We can't afford to mess up now."

Ronin looked back and whistled at seeing the ninja's looks of determination. "Hey, no need to look so serious. I've been meaning to ask this, but how exactly does finding tomb of the First Spinjitzu Master stop those ghosts from invading Ninjago?"

"I'm surprised you didn't know seeing that you were listening in on us," Nya countered.

Ronin sighed. "Look, Nya, I know that your mad at me for what I did. Heck, you all are. But would I be here right now if I didn't want to help you? Believe it or not, I care about this place. You think I want to see it overrun with ghosts?"

Nya faltered. There was a moment of silence before her face fell and she let the device fall at her side. "You're right. I'm the one being unfair right now. I keep talking about how you need to change and am completely ignoring that that's what you're trying to do now. I guess I'm just pressured right now with my powers being the only thing to stop Morro. I haven't even used my powers for that long, but…"

Ronin looked down so that his hat concealed his expression and turned back to the controls. He coughed. "Well, you'll have the chance to test that out soon enough. We're getting close."

As R.E.X started to propel into the dark caverns the light dimmed. Cole gasped involuntary. Jay turned to him with concern and Zane put his hand on his shoulder.

Cole smiled faintly, gently pushing Zane's hand off. "I'm fine guys. If Nya trusts Ronin that this is sealed tight then I'm confident with that. Besides, we have bigger problems to worry about right now. I'm fine, see?"

Zane raised his brow while Cole smiled nervously.

Jay's gaze shifted to Kai, who was shaking. "Kai, I thought you got over your fear of water!"

Kai was shivering. Nya had to hold him to steady him. Nya rose her brow.

"Get over his fear of water? When did that happen? Kai's been afraid of water ever since-"

Kai pulled himself free. "Look, they already know Nya. They don't need to hear it again, okay?" Kai took a deep breath while looking out the window, the scenery of the dark, warping water passing them. "It's just like that student of Yang's said. I only managed to pass because we all worked together. But that doesn't make it any different. Cole has the right to be scared, not me."

"Fear is a powerful weapon. It is in all of us and can either be turned against ourselves or be wielded if can overcome it," Wu said suddenly. He had been so silent the entire time that the ninja looked up in shock to see him speak. "It is what Nya faced when she was afraid of shedding her identity, what Misako faced when she was left with a son she both loved but feared, and my own fear of failing all of you after my brother's passing. But see what it can become if you do not let it consume you? If I am here and not in my tea shop counting change than let that be a lesson to you all that it is never too late to overcome it."

When he finished he didn't turn to Kai or Cole, but instead faced Ronin.

It was at that moment that not only the light showing them their surroundings had faded, but the light inside of R.E.X had went out with a click.

With a grinding lurch the ship lifted up and sent the ninja flying back.

"Um, guys why did the lights go off?" Kai asked worriedly, his fear slipping through. "Guys? Where are you?"

As Kai stretched out his hands Nya held his shoulders firmly. "It could have only have been Ronin. He was the one at the control panel! Why didn't you see what he was going to do with the sword?"

"Ugh-I wasn't looking! I was paying too much to the water!"

"You weren't looking at the sword?" Nya took in a deep breath. While she tried to keep her voice level, it was obvious that her temper was flaring. "Kai, I know that you're afraid of water, but you can't get distracted! That sword is our major advantage over Morro and we can't risk not using it. Maybe...maybe someone else should use it. I'm supposed to be our main source of stopping Morro, right? Then it would only make sense that I would have it."

Kai pushed Nya back without really thinking and gripped the sword, shaking his head. "No, I'm the one who got the sword Nya. You still have your powers. What about the rest of us? How do you think I feel every time you whip out your powers and I can't do anything? I need to be the one to save Lloyd. I promised him-I just can't keep sitting back, doing nothing."

Zane felt his way forward and tried to hold back Nya. "I would not suggest taking this any further. You are both stressed, Kai feeling frustrated and your own anger at Ronin being directed at Kai and it is not making either of you think clearly. We must focus on the situation at hand."

Even as R.E.X continued to move blindly in the darkness Nya ignored him. "No! How come I keep being told that I'm the most important person for this mission and yet I don't get any say in things? You guys never let me be a part of your group, even when you need me you won't admit it!"

Zane's mouth gaped open like a fish, not sure what to say as Kai and Nya boiled between him. His mind went over several possibilities, but none avoided taking sides in the situation.

While Zane stood in silence Cole stepped forward.

"That's enough," Cole said, shoving himself between the two. "Arguing is getting us nowhere. We'll figure out who gets the sword later-right now we need to focus on the situation at hand. Unless you want water to shoot in here and for me to explode we better find a way to stop Ronin. He must have set R.E.X on autopilot, right? Now we need to-"

Before he could finish R.E.X suddenly shot up. The lights flickered on and they could see that they were no longer underwater, but floating in a small pool in the cavern. Stagelmites shined overhead, illuminating the deep, rich blue of the rock. It was breathtaking, the entire cavern seemed to wink with the tiny crystals embedded in it, but no one seemed to take notice of it.

Jay slowly opened his eyes. "Heh, we're here. Are you guys okay now, or…?

Nya and Kai both spoke at the same time. "NO!"

The ninja drew back in shock. It wasn't uncommon for the siblings to squabble over things, arguments usually flaring over who's turn it was to do chores or if Kai left a mess in Nya's control area, but they had never seen the two get so mad at one another that it looked like they were about to pounce.

Cole struggled with what to say before Wu put his hand on his shoulder. Feeling more confident, Cole stepped out of R.E.X and jumped onto the land surrounding the crystal pool.

Zane's eyes lit up and he followed. Jay stood on R.E.X, unsure of what they were doing, before Cole nodded at Kai and Nya. Jay opened his mouth in an 'O' shape and jumped down by the two.

Kai and Nya stood hesitantly, daring the other to go first before Nya suddenly jumped down.

Kai stood smugly. "Hah! How do you like that…". Kai stopped, seeing Wu stand behind him.

"And that's why you should be looking at the sword," Nya said, putting her hands on her hips.

Kai laughed nervously as Wu's eyes bored into his back. Stepping down he walked with the others. Cole and Wu took the lead, winding through the cave system before stopping in a circular chamber with several doors made of stone circling around them.

Zane's gaze settled on the top of one of the doors.

"There's an inscription here," he explained, clearing his throat. "'Enter this passage to follow the path that all can see, but don't always pass. With elements traveling through each successive generation, I trust that you will bring peace to my nation.'"

As the ninja looked at one another in confusion Wu's eyes widened and he rubbed his neck sheepishly. "Ah, did I forget to mention that my father was fond of riddles?"

Kai groaned. "Well, now we know where you get it from. Just how long is it going to take to get through this place?" Kai gestured to the doors with his sword. "There's so many doors-how will we know which one to go through?"

"Well, we aren't completely in the dark, contrary to what you may believe," Zane said, fiddling with a device on his arm. "I am connecting to Misako right now. If she is on the Bounty as she said she would be-"

Before Zane could finish Misako's voice filtered from his arm.

"Can you hear me?"

Nya winced and leaned over Zane. "It's a bit fuzzy, but it's not that surprising. We are pretty far down right now. What's up?"

"I have a collection of scrolls in front of me on anything I could find out about the tomb," Misako explained. "From what I can gather, there are several trials you will have to face before arriving to the location of the realm crystal."

"Then that's what the doors must be for!" Jay said excitedly. "If Misako has the scrolls, then we don't have to guess which door is the right one, right?"

"I'm sorry to be the bearer of bad news, but according to this while you will know which doors to go through, you won't be going together. The First Spinjitzu Master didn't place his tomb under the ocean for a peaceful resting place. He was afraid that people, specifically those with bad intentions, would stumble on it and use the realm crystal for their own gain. If, however, the realms ever had to be traversed he trusted only the descendants of the elemental masters to possess it. That's why there should be symbols above each door, representing each of the elements."

The ninja looked above the doors to see their respective symbols etched into the stone. Alongside them, the elements they had discovered from the Tournament, such as amber, ash, invisibility, sound, telepathy and so on were also above them. Creation, it's emblem shining, was on the door in the center.

"But we don't have our powers," Kai said, using the sword to point to the door with his symbol, clearly frustrated. "What are we supposed to do? Let ourselves get beaten by our own elements?"

"We may not have our elemental powers, but we cannot afford to give up here," Zane said. "Ninja never quit. Remember how Sensei discovered each of us to be his students? We may very well still hold enough traces of our elements to pass through the trials."

"So...I guess this is it then," Jay said, standing by his door. He looked down nervously.

Cole turned from his own door and put his hand on Jay's shoulder, smirking. "Hey, what happened to the confident ninja that can't stop talking?"

Jay shuffled his feet. "It's just that, well...how are you always so calm and collected during stuff like this? You always know what to do and exactly say to make someone feel better." Jay's voice turned quieter. "That's why what happened to you isn't fair."

Cole's eyebrows rose. "You think I'm perfect?"

After a moment of hesitation Jay nodded.

"Jay, I was more of a mess than any of you after turning into a ghost. If I'm always so collected don't you think that I wouldn't have acted the way that did? You aren't giving yourself enough credit. If it weren't for you, I would have no never stopped complaining about it. I would probably still be in my room right now."

Jay looked up to see Cole's comforting smile. The other ninja also gave him encouraging expressions. Embarrassed, Jay faced the door.

"Okay, elemental powers or not, we can do this."

"On the count of three?" Cole asked. Everyone nodded.

In unison, everyone echoed after him. "One, two, THREE!"

* * *

As the ninja of fire it was no coincidence that Kai was associated with having a bad temper, but only after living together since Wu had formed the ninja team had the others realized the full wrath of his anger.

Throughout the time they were in the circular chamber Kai had tapped his foot impatiently, fixing his gaze steely at the door with the symbol of fire, occasionally snapping an angry comment as his impatience grew. No one dared to approach the fire ninja, remembering past incidents where attempts to calm Kai down from one of his mood swings had gone...worse than planned.

When they were first beginning to work together Kai and Jay had a rocky relationship, mainly stemmed from Jay's infatuation with Nya. It was a late night after a full day of missions and the ninja had decided to unwind by watching a scary movie. At first Jay boldly told everyone, sneaking glances at Nya, that it took a lot to make him scared. In the middle of one of his rants the main character in the movie was suddenly attacked by the killer and Jay fell back into the couch, falling on Nya. Kai had tensed, but Nya laughed the situation off and everyone went back to focusing on the movie. Kai, however, couldn't help noticing that Nya and Jay were stealing glances at one another. Eventually Kai couldn't take it anymore. He went into his room in the middle of the movie and slammed the door.

Jay had nervously approached the door, shuffling his feet while he apologized. The door suddenly opened and Jay's face brightened as he looked up only to have dirty clothes be thrown in his face. Kai continued to throw whatever was in arm's reach and when he reached for a heavy weight Jay had immediately ran out, putting his hands up to protect his face before the door slammed behind him.

Even small things could set Kai off. After a bad night's sleep Kai was groggily eating cereal, spilling the milk onto the tablecloth. Zane innocently asked Kai to be careful not to make a mess, seeing as how he had just ironed the tablecloth that morning.

All of the ninja had stopped what they were doing, food paused mid-way to their mouths. After a moment of silence Kai flipped the bowl up, drenching Zane in milk before he threw his chair back and stormed off.

Nothing, however, could match the battles between the two siblings. Kai and Nya were fiercely close. For a long time they only had each other after their parent's deaths, and that made the two dependent on the other until they were finally able to open up to the team. But as any siblings they had their fights. They often played a silent game to get back at the other, creating subtle, but destructive ways to create extra chores or mess with the other's personal items. During those days everyone tried to their best to stay out of the line of fire before their anger eventually subsided and peace was restored to the Bounty.

So the fact that Nya had directly targeted her anger at Kai and the two were visibly arguing with the other made the ninja tense. They had no idea how to approach either of the ninja, so their anger awkwardly hung in the air as the ninja tried to focus on the challenge that the First Spinjitzu Master had set for them.

Finally, Cole gave the signal. Kai grabbed the door handle tightly, focusing on his breath as he thought about saving Lloyd once they got the realm crystal, but looking up to see Nya to the door next to him made Kai's anger surface again. Exchanging a glare Kai threw the door open and immediately stepped into the chamber, the door shutting behind him.

Once he was in the chamber Kai threw his fist against the cavern's wall.

"Who does she think she is?" He asked angrily, looking up from the wall. "Doesn't she realize that I'm the one who needs the sword right now? She has her water powers and what do I have? Nothing."

Kai pulled out the sword from his sheath. The sword was clear, only reflecting his own expression. It showed the small flash of insecurity in his eyes, making Kai step back.

"So that's how it's going to be, huh? Well, two can play at that game."

Kai threw the sword into the darkness of the chamber, panting heavily.

He slowly straightened his back and stood back up. He looked up at the ceiling, as if someone were looking down at him and judging his actions. It was ridiculous, but some part of him felt like he could feel the First Spinjitzu Master's presence.

"I'm still a ninja, even without my powers," he defended himself, giving a short laugh. "It's not like I need the sword to prove myself. I'm just using it because I can't afford to let Morro get one more step ahead of us and have more time to torment Lloyd. That's it."

His words echoed awkwardly in the chamber. Kai shook his head.

"What was I expecting, a response?"

Kai huffed and reached forward to grab the sword on the ground. Just as his foot stepped forward he tripped against a wire. "Wow!"

Falling headfirst to the ground Kai narrowly brought his hand out to break his fall. Kai groaned and propped the sword up. The sword's reflection made Kai's expression change to fear.

"That can't be good…"

Kai flipped up and dove forward, holding the sword against his chest just before the chamber burst into flames.

Kai stepped back. The fire was surrounding him and it was getting difficult to breathe. Waving his free hand to clear the smoke Kai noticed the red adorning the chamber's walls, decorated with yellow flames across.

"Nice to see that that this place has ambiance," he said sarcastically, bringing up the sword to see the reflection.

The sword flashed the image of a flame shooting from an opening in the floor right below him. Looking down Kai noticed that the ground was covered with them.

"Well, that explains where the fire came from."

Kai jumped out of the way just as the flame shot up, grazing his sleeve. Kai winced.

The sword flashed again with the same image. Kai groaned.

"I'm starting to see where this is going."

Kai jumped out the way as the scalding flames launched up to the chamber's ceiling.

The pattern continued mercilessly. It seemed that no matter which direction he took the flames would leer up at him, forcing him to dart and flip out of the way. There was no pattern to their movements as far as he could tell, but it did seem to be leading him closer to the door he had entered from, as if it were pushing him back.

Although Kai loved the heat it was getting difficult to concentrate. He could feel himself beginning to sweat and his hair was starting to sag down. His movements steadily became more sluggish and weary. He was holding up the sword constantly now, nervous that he would miss a reflection.

Kai flipped back to where the door was to catch his breath. Studying the sword in front of him he winced, looking back up at the orange and red flames.

"Who am I kidding? I would have been burned worse than Cole's casserole if it weren't for this thing."

Kai closed his eyes, feeling the heat of the fire on his face.

"I feel so powerless. Was this how Nya felt before she got her powers?"

Kai opened his eyes and reached out his hand. He groaned, letting his head fall down when the fire continued to burn relentlessly in front of him. Placing his back against the door Kai held the sword up.

"Fine, I can't use my elemental powers. There has to be something else I can do that can help me find a way around this." Kai sighed. "Okay, let's go back to the beginning. What made Sensei make me the fire ninja in the first place?"

Kai started at the sword before a grin spread across his face. "I've been thinking about this wrong the whole time-fire is impulsive, it can't be predicted!"

Kai put the sword back on his sheath and faced the fire directly. He looked for an opening and jumped in directly.

The fire rose above him, but Kai turned, twisting out of the way just as a flame appeared next to him.

Kai started at where the flame appeared with amazement before grinning.

"Airjitzu!"

Spinning above the ring of fire Kai landed in another opening before running through the chamber.

He jumped and flipped on instinct, being almost as impulsive as the fire crackling in the chamber. Although his shoulders brushed against the fire on accident he still had a broad grin on his face.

Kai leaned over when he made to the end. Wiping his forehead he straightened and saw that he had made it to the door on the other end.

Taking the sword he undid the latch and threw the sword across his shoulder, turning back to the fire in the chamber.

"You know, they don't call me the most talented ninja for nothing. I like to think on my feet." Kai grabbed the door handle. "I'd stay, but I have things to do."

Winking, Kai walked through the door.

* * *

The first thing that Zane noted when he entered the chamber was the cold. Well, due to his body being a robot he couldn't exactly feel the cold. But his sensors were noting the dramatic drop of temperature as he walked further in, so he wasn't surprised when he was met with a blistering wind and a room filled with snow and ice.

The ice covered most of the room, its smooth surface reflecting the silver of Zane's body. Hesitantly, Zane stepped one foot onto the surface.

Almost immediately the ice began to sink in and crack, allowing some of the water to seep through. Zane took a step back, his feet crunching into the snow. For a moment his usually calm demeanor flickered into unease.

"This is almost a mirror image of when Sensei found me."

Zane closed his eyes as he recalled the village he was found in. While he was immensely grateful for the warm beds and food they offered him, he couldn't help but be drawn to the icy cold pond in the middle of the village. He would meditate at the bottom of it for hours at a time, imagining what his family was like and why they abandoned him in the middle of the forest.

Obviously, he had found his answer after finding the tree in Birchwood Forest. But he had to face the reality that his father was gone forever until they had found Dr. Julien in the lighthouse. For a few weeks, thoughts of what father and son could do together filled his mind. Zane had never imagined himself to be so engrossed in the idea, but he found that he enjoyed the feeling. But then again, life was never that simple.

Zane opened his eyes and looked down at the water rushing under the ice.

"I...I cannot will myself to go over it. It brings back too many memories of all the times I spent in the pond, wondering about my family."

"Zane, is everything alright? Do you need me to perform an analysis of the ice's stability?"

Alarm crossed Zane's face until he realized that it had been Pixal speaking. While he had taken Pixal into his system willingly, it was still difficult to get used to the fact of having another person seeing all of his actions.

Although it pained him, Zane reached for a command that would temporarily cease connection.

"Zane, what are you-"

Zane fell back, holding his arms tightly against himself. Suddenly the room felt too cold. The wind blowing across it wasn't calming, but as harsh and unforgiving as death. Honestly, he had rarely expressed his feelings of his father's death after the final battle. He knew that the others would do anything to comfort him, but something had held him back. Perhaps it was childish, but he didn't want them to tell him that they knew how it felt. It was illogical, seeing that Kai and Nya knew exactly how it felt, seeing as how they had both felt the effects of their parents' death their whole lives. Even Zane could sense that Cole had similar periods of emotion. Rarely did he ever bring up his mother's death, and the times he did the atmosphere had quickly gotten tense.

Even knowing this, some part of him felt that this was his pain, and that by telling someone that would make the pain less impactful and personal.

Zane looked at his reflection in the ice. He slowly stood.

"It is true that my father has passed. But that does not mean that there is an end to my love for him. Robotic or not, I have emotions." Zane grimaced, remembering the Stiix's woman and her nasty remarks. "I will not let those memories drag me down! I will use the times spent with my father to remember the feeling of compassion and the importance of helping others. That is my duty."

Zane skidded onto the ice. Using his feet like skates he gracefully slid across it, his movements light and feather-like. Anyone else would have cracked the ice and fell in.

Zane closed his eyes, feeling the chilly wind across his cheek as he let his memories of his father help him glide across. A small smile grew on his face.

He saw his father teaching him how to use a spoon and cook. He saw his father giving him the falcon and the falcon flying up along the winding staircase in the tree.

Zane leaped up and spun in a circle, holding his arms across his chest.

He saw the lighthouse standing on top of the cliff, watching over the Endless Sea. He saw his father hugging him as soon as the lighthouse door opened.

Zane skidded to a stop as the ice ended, reaching the door. Zane smiled, placing his hand on the handle.

"I see now that I should not let my father's death hold me back, but rather help me forward. I should not be ashamed of what he built me to be, but continue to aspire towards what he taught me. Thank you for helping me come to that realization."

* * *

The chamber buzzed with energy. Jay felt his hair start to stand on its ends as he stood in front of the crackling room. Lightning sparked from a large generator and traveled across the metal that was laid out across the chamber. It was a display of raw power.

"Wow, cool…" Jay muttered to himself in awe. However, as soon as he stepped forward the tiny sparks of electricity shot across him and he jumped back, gritting in pain. "Ouch! I take back what I said, okay?"

Jay put his hand in his mouth and after wetting it, shook it to try to get the pain off. His eyes followed the metal across the chamber and he sighed. The feeling of awe that he had felt at entering the chamber had been replaced by a feeling of despair.

"There's no way I can get through here without getting shocked! Ugh!" Jay rubbed his hands against his face. "It seemed so easy when I had the ability to control lightning. But now I'm just back to being a boy that grew up in a junkyard."

As he looked at the electrical currents bend in front of him in ribbons of blue Jay shook his head.

"Just remember what Cole said...I can do this."

Even though Cole had assured him that he was strong he was beginning to feel doubt creep in his stomach. Was he a good ninja because of his own abilities, or only because he could control such a powerful element?

Jay had always been drawn to lightning. Despite being easily scared of monsters in the dark (thus Mr. Cuddlywomps) and loud noises, Jay was fascinated by storms as a kid.

He would watch the lightning dance across the sky, wide-eyed, while holding his blanket over his head as it poured. Once Ed and Edna discovered that he was walking out of his bedroom to sit on top of the trailer when it stormed he had to content himself with looking out the window of his bedroom.

He would press his hand against the window, tracing where the lightning would bolt across the sky.

So having the element so close to him and no longer under his control made Jay acutely aware of how dangerous lightning was.

"Maybe I shouldn't have been able to control it in the first place. I'm not smart like Zane, strong like Cole, natural at fighting like Kai, or even confident like Nya."

Jay felt like curling up in the corner as he felt his doubts resurfacing. Just what could he do anyway? As he stared at the crackling sparks Jay's eyes suddenly lit up.

"I got it!

Jay jumped up and grabbed a few of the parts littered on the ground. As he worked eagerly his thoughts raced. Tinkering was what had drawn him to the element in the first place. What if he could make something that could get him through the room?

The realization made his work easier. Jay felt his fears subside and he started to feel a familiarity with the sparks, even without having his powers directly.

"And...finished!" Jay held up his creation.

To others the parts wired together wouldn't look like much. But learning under Ed had taught Jay a lot about what someone could do with random parts.

Jay laughed nervously. "Now all I have do is run to the control panel while avoiding the metal carrying a current of electricity. No big deal."

Jay positioned himself into a runner's lunge.

There was one skill that Jay took pride in, and that was his agility. Whenever there was competition between them, or even when they were running from an especially tough enemy, Jay always ran and acted the fastest.

Twisting himself under poles, jumping over them, and ducking, he quickly went through the chamber despite the fact that he should have been hit several times over.

When he reached the generator he allowed himself little time to catch his breath. Jay pried the small panel open before grabbing the wires and connecting them to the machine.

The electricity under the glass dome started to move more rapidly. Jay quickly jumped back just before it short-circuited and the control panel exploded.

Jay coughed and cleared the smoke with his hand. The chamber was in darkness.

"I did it." Jay laughed as it washed over him. "I really did it!"

Almost in a daze Jay tripped in the darkness as he found the door, using the metal poles to help guide him. With a large grin on his face despite the fact that he was trembling all over he laughed as his hand found the knob.

* * *

" _It's just that, well...how are you always so calm and collected during stuff like this? You always know what to do and exactly say to make someone feel better."_

Jay's words repeated in his head as Cole had turned to his own chamber door, the earth symbol shining in the low light in the circular room. It encouraged Cole to act more confident as he counted down to when they all opened their respective doors.

But what he said to Jay was true. While Jay's comment made Cole grateful that they had made amends and become good friends he knew that he was far from perfect. Just like Zane had pointed out earlier when they were on R.E.X, Cole still sometimes had moments where his fear slipped through. But that wasn't what made him flawed.

There was something far more pressing that he had tried to ignore ever since he had his transformation: he hadn't told his father that he was now a ghost.

Cole stopped, only having taken a few steps into the chamber.

Even though he had largely mended the tensions with his father ever since gaining his true potential they still had rough patches. They rarely could find the time to see each other now with his father's performances and his own work as a ninja. Although Lou had accepted Cole becoming a ninja their separate lives made the gap between them even more obvious.

And, Cole had to admit to himself, he had deliberately not invited Lou to the tea shop even when there were no threats because he was too nervous to make the phone call. Even though he made himself out to be a confident person, Cole was an introvert at heart. It was just that being on the team for so long had made the serious, disciplined person he was when Wu had first assembled them into the joking and food-loving person he was now.

"I can either stand here and worry or focus on getting through this," Cole said, shaking his head out of this thoughts as he walked forward to where the chamber started to come into focus. A grin spread across Cole's face. "Now this is what I call the earth master's chamber."

The chamber was breathtaking. Stalactites hung from the ceiling while stalagmites grew from the floor as if they were trying to reach the other. The ground was earthy, allowing for small plants to grow through the cracks between the rocks. As Cole walked in further he traced his hand against the cave's walls, where drawings of small figures with animals were carved with great precision and care.

While earth wasn't as flashy as some of the other elements like fire and lightning, Cole always admired earth the most. It was strong and sturdy, helping to give him support whenever he was tired or worrying too much about a mission.

Cole stepped forward onto the ground confidentially when a low rumble traveled through the cave. Cole moved back just when one of the stalactites fell down just where he had been standing.

"Wow oh, now I see where this is going."

Cole smirked, unable to help himself. He always loved to push himself to his limit, and to be honest, he was excited to see how his new body would help him through this challenge.

Cartwheeling to the side as another stalactite fell Cole grinned, regaining his balance as he looked at his hands.

"Let's see what else this body can do."

As the stalactites fell rapidly Cole easily moved to avoid them, airjitzuing through the chamber as he laughed.

When he landed Cole wiped his forehead. The ground started to shake and Cole looked down to see a crack form under his feet.

Cole winced. "Okay, so being a ghost doesn't make you exactly invincible. Noted."

As Cole ran across the chamber the crack continued to grow. Cole started to breathe more heavily. His eyes lit up as he saw the door on the other end.

"Come on...Almost there…"

Just before he reached the door the earth sank at his feet and the ceiling started to fall with more rubble.

Cole slowly opened his eyes. He was covered with rubble and could barely see around him. Unconsciously he started to shake. For a flash he could see the image of a dark-haired woman being lifted into the earth and the last shovel of dirt being thrown over her.

"Is that why I don't want to tell him? Because I'm like her now…?"

Cole shook his head and focused on the situation at hand. He tried to pull himself forward, but the rubble started to move with him.

Cole stopped, panting.

His movement had created a small opening in the rocks. Cole closed his eyes and let go of his focus of his body, allowing him to move through the rubble and stand at the door.

After a few tense moments Cole regained control of his body. He walked to the door. He didn't want to think about that feeling again.

* * *

Nya knew that her face was burning as she stepped into the chamber, both out of anger and embarrassment. She hoped that she had least held herself together after her outburst.

Ever since she had worked at Four Weapons Nya had an obsession to always perform her best. This had stemmed from her natural talent at blacksmithing and the villager's admiration at her skill, especially when there was such a gap between Nya and Kai. Being young and impressionable, Nya started to develop a perfectionist attitude.

And, Nya reminded herself, her face growing darker, she had liked keeping a confident, intelligent attitude around Jay when she had first joined the ninja on the Destiny's Bounty.

But deep down she knew that she wasn't perfect. Even as her flaws were unraveling as she voiced her insecurities about leaving behind Samurai X, and now, if she even belonged on the team, she tried her best to push those thoughts down when she was around the others.

Nya straightened her shoulders as she walked through the dark and narrow tunnel. "I understand not taking sides, but it would have been nice if _someone_ had stood up. But no, it's always about Kai. Kai needing to hog the bathroom in the morning because he needs to get ready, Kai getting fan mail, Kai getting powers...Ugh, I wish that I could just rip that cocky grin off his face sometimes…"

Nya's voice trailed off before she suddenly lost her footing and fell forward.

"Wow!"

Before she could stop herself Nya splashed into a pool of water. After a few moments Nya surfaced, gasping for air.

"Water for the water ninja. Cute." After wiping her face the cavern came into focus. Nya's eyes widened as she took in her surroundings. "What is this place…?"

The chamber was similar to the pool of water that R.E.X had surfaced from in that they were both a part of the underwater cave system. Something was immediately off to her though. Unlike the blue water from the other pool of water, this water was dark. Planks of wood bobbed over the water, but each time the water moved it was like the water was cutting them like glass. As she was swimming in place Nya winced each time she had to move her arms across the water. It was like the water was cutting her. It was...unnatural. She could barely feel any connection to it.

The still water suddenly started to move as waves from the end of the chamber reached her. Nya started to swim against it, hoping that she could reach the door before the waves built up.

Although Nya didn't have a lot of experience she still considered herself a decent enough swimmer. On the hot summer days in the village, Nya, along with many of the other kids, would go to the pond behind the shop. Although, Nya winced, she supposed that those trips had been a lot more infrequent after that winter day where Kai had skidded across the ice to get her toy and had plunged into the cold water.

Before she could get far a huge wave of the dark, foreboding water crashed over her. Nya swam back up, only to have another wave crash over her.

Nya sank to the bottom and huffed before swimming back to the surface.

As Nya kept forcing herself up she saw that the door was becoming further and further away from her as the waves kept pushing her back.

Nya held out her hand, closing her eyes as she tried to send the waves back. "Come on...Why isn't this working?"

As she was thrown back Nya coughed out water. Nya wiped her eyes, and as the chamber came into focus, she saw that one of the wooden planks had been thrown back to her.

After pulling herself up onto it Nya groaned, glaring at the water and her reflection.

"This is impossible! I accepted that I'm the water ninja, so why can't I control you?"

Nya smashed her fist into the water. As the ripples slowly disappeared and the water came back into focus Nya saw her reflection. Her face was twisted in anger and her shoulders were rising with each heavy breath she took.

Nya faltered. "Do I really look like that when I'm frustrated?"

Nya looked down.

"And there goes my self-control. Again." Nya sighed, putting her hands in her face. "Maybe I am easy-tempered like Kai. Or as immoral as Ronin. Even though I'm supposed to be like mom I feel like I'm more distant from her than ever…"

Nya let her voice trail off as she looked forward to see another wooden plank bobbing above the water. Her lips drew into a thin line. Closing her eyes she held out her hands and started to sing under her breath.

"My sweet little pearl,

With tears running down your cheeks,

Let the waves rock you to sleep.

Listen to the sound of waves against the shore,

Let the water clear your mind."

It was the only memory of her mother that Nya could faintly recall. In her memory she could see the blurry image of a woman with dark hair over her, quietly singing to her whenever she got upset.

Slowly, Nya relaxed and focused her attention back at the wooden plank across from her.

"I can do this," Nya muttered under her breath before jumping off the plank.

Before she crashed into the water Nya suddenly propelled herself up in a tornado cloud of water and fell onto the next plank.

As the swirling water disappeared around her Nya cautiously opened one eye before breaking into a smile.

Nya turned to the waves building up at the other end of the chamber.

"Now let's see your best shot."

Nya performed spinjitzu over the water, falling back on the line of planks, spinning too high for the waves to hit her.

In a final whirl Nya spun to the door and tripped on landing, falling face-first by the door. Her face grew dark for a moment before she stood up and shook her head, wiping off her uniform of the dripping water.

"Thanks mom," Nya whispered, putting her hand on the door. "I needed that."

* * *

Wu walked into a completely white, empty space. Turning quickly back to the door, Wu found that the door had disappeared into the whiteness of the room.

"That special emblem on the door was misleading."

With some unease, Wu took his makeshift staff and walked forward into the ever-stretching whiteness. He would have preferred it if it were his father's, but he had to do with what he had since Morro had stolen his staff.

The room suddenly started to shift in front of him.

Wu put up his staff to guard himself as the room shaped into the monastery. Hesitantly, Wu tapped his staff against where the room's walls previously were and the image warped slightly out of focus.

"Why do we have to go through these books? How is reading supposed to help me get stronger?"

It was an early morning in the courtyard. Morro was surrounded by books and scrolls and couldn't understand how Wu was finding so much enthusiasm with them. That morning Wu had woken him up eagerly, and Morro had walked into the courtyard, expecting to find something exciting. Wu didn't seem to sense his disappointment as Morro saw the books set along on the steps leading up to the main door.

"Misako only leant me these scrolls for today Morro. That's why we need to get through them before our usual training session. She's very protective of them. We're lucky that we even got our hands on them."

Morro's eyes flashed with jealousy. "If she can read, than so can I. Teach me how to read them Sensei."

Wu chuckled lightly. "Learning how to read is going to be a longer process than what we can accomplish in a few hours. But I would be happy to teach you the importance of these scrolls. One must sharpen their mind as much as their blade. A dull-witted warrior is no better than any ordinary man. I think that you'll find reading to be enjoyable once you start to pick up on it. It helps to open your mind to ideas and learn new things."

Morro looked through the scrolls before his hand stopped on one. "What's this one?"

Wu looked at the scroll that Morro had handed him. His eyes brightened at seeing the image of a ninja dressed in green robes.

"This is the prophecy of the green ninja. It is prophesied that the green ninja will restore the balance between good and evil, which was upset by the Overlord and his Stone Warriors."

Morro was completely engrossed. "So, then the person that's this green ninja will become the most important person ever?"

"Most certainly. You see, I believe that if you…"

The younger Wu's voice fizzled out as Morro suddenly shifted his attention to the Wu looking out at the scene.

The room turned white again, leaving Morro and Wu alone.

Morro advanced on him, growing older with each step. "Why did you give me false hope, Wu? You left me to prove myself and to die alone! I'll make you feel what I had to face!"

Wu held up his staff in front of his face just before Morro could strike. "Morro…" He panted, avoided Morro's strikes. "I'm sorry that if I led you to believe that you needed to base your importance on becoming the green ninja. You never needed to prove your worth to the world. You already showed that enough by your ability to leave behind your old life on the street and master wind. I never should have asked more from you."

"Too late."

Morro started to grow larger, and when he smiled his teeth were sharper. Before he could deliver the final blow Wu started to piece it together.

"This is all a figment of my imagination. That is the power of creation."

Morro stepped back and stretching out his arm to Wu, he suddenly disappeared in a whirl of smoke. Breathing heavily, Wu used his staff to help himself up. Staring at the edge of the room he held up his hands.

Moving his hands gracefully, Wu started to erect an image out of the whiteness. A door slowly started to take form before coloring into existence.

It creaked open and Wu felt an immense feeling of relief.

* * *

"I gave you the aeroblades and practically left the ninja in the middle of nowhere. That was the deal," Ronin said gruffly, eyeing Morro carefully.

He hadn't wanted to agree to Morro's little "proposal." It wasn't that he had that much of a connection to the ninja, so he couldn't say that he liked or disliked them. Ronin liked to keep things neutral-it made business deals easier when you don't have to worry about cutting your profit to allies or worry about enemies. In short, he didn't like to form attachments. If it weren't for the fact that Morro was dangling his debt to Soul Archer in front of him he wouldn't have listened. But Morro...Morro was dangerous. Even more so than when he had seen him last in Stiix. So Ronin flinched back when Morro reached forward and grabbed his collar, pulling him up so that his feet were lifted above the ground.

"You were supposed to get the sword! Didn't I make that clear when...nevermind, it's no use. What's the point of repeating things?"

Morro threw him down and Ronin coughed, struggling to breath. Morro huffed, starting to walk away from him.

"I couldn't get near the thing…" Ronin said under his breath. "Kid practically had it tied to his hip."

"You don't know a thing that's going on, do you?" Morro smirked at Ronin's baffled expression and turned around. "Do you even know where we are right now?"

Ronin propped up his elbow and inhaled sharply as he got up. Following Morro into the lighted area of the cavern he saw several doors circling around them. He whistled. "Geez, there must be a dozen."

"I asked you a question," Morro hissed, punching Ronin in his midsection.

"What the heck kid!" Ronin groaned, grabbing his stomach. "This is supposed to be a business deal. Not some interrogation method. I'm on your side."

"You thought this was some sort of deal?" Morro laughed and Ronin felt his insides growing cold. He tried to back away, but Morro grabbed his arm and yanked him back, continuing to hold it in a death grip. "Let me make this clear _partner_. I'm the one making the decisions. You have no say in what happens from now. Try to oppose me again and I'll make you wish you never left your adorable little shop."

When Morro let go Ronin immediately knew that there was something wrong with his arm. It hung limply at his side and he felt like screaming out in pain.

He didn't dare to though. Why didn't he trust the ninja? What had made him think that Morro was really going to release his debt from Soul Archer? He was dealing with something far more menacing. There was doubt about it-the kid had a monstrous and mad look in his eyes. If he made one wrong move things could end quickly.

He decided to play along. "It's the First Spinjitzu Master's Tomb. I heard them talking about it earlier."

"Exactly." Morro's eyes glinted. "Finally, after all of these years. But I have a new plan this time. Something that doesn't help poor old Sensei Wu. Something...dark." Morro's face instantly changed. Once ecstatic at the prospects of his plan coming together it suddenly darkened. "Only elemental masters of spinjitzu can get through these doors. So I won't be needing you anymore."

Morro gave the signal. The tomb suddenly lighted up with ghosts flying up from the floor. Even though he couldn't take them with him, Morro was certain to ensure that they wouldn't be waste time while he was faced with the task of getting the realm crystal. Besides, he couldn't deny that he was excited with the prospect of finishing off things himself.

Morro grabbed the door handle that corresponded to wind and smirked, taking one last look at Bansha and Soul Archer's ever closer arrow hovering over the terrified Ronin before closing the door.

* * *

Kai was the first one out of the chamber. The exit led to another grand display of the cavern's beauty. Ice coated the walls and the floor, reflecting Kai's image. Kai didn't pay it much mind, bouncing the sword off his knee nervously as he eyed the doors, waited for Nya to exit.

Jay was the next one to step out. At seeing Kai his eyes lit up and he threw an arm around his shoulder.

Kai was a little surprised at Jay's sudden enthusiasm, but he couldn't help but grin as Jay talked.

"Who are the best protectors of Ninjago even without elemental powers? We are!"

"We are pretty great. Not to mention good-looking."

Jay snorted and Kai drew back. As Kai looked offended Jay tried to control his laughter. "Sorry...it's just that I'm glad to see that you're back to being Kai."

"Fine, I'll let that one slide this time. Don't start getting used it."

Suddenly, one of the other doors opened. Kai couldn't help but notice that Cole's expression was a bit pained, but he didn't say anything as Jay brightened and went up to greet him.

"Cole!" Jay exclaimed.

Cole grinned, patting Jay on the back as he looked up at Kai. "Looks like the three of us made it. Now all there's to do is wait and make sure that the others get out okay."

"I don't know about you, but my challenge was ridiculous," Jay said, putting his hands on his hips. "I'm starting to think that the First Spinjitzu Master designed those chambers to knock out intruders for good, not just to prevent them from getting inside."

As Jay talked, Zane exited another door, his face absolutely beaming.

Kai turned his attention to him and had a playful smirk. "What made our resident nindroid so happy?"

Zane, usually so composed, looked down in embarrassment as everyone turned to face him. "You could say that I've had an epiphany. The experience has helped me resolve some inner conflicts that have been holding me back for a considerable amount of time. Of course, our main objective still stands."

Kai's smile faded as he saw that Nya had exited the other door and had locked eye contact with him. As she walked towards him he winced.

"Look, Nya, before you yell at me let me say a few things," Kai said, his voice growing more nervous as he realized that everyone's attention had shifted to them. "I'm sorry that I haven't said that much about you joining the team. At first it was because of my stupid fear of water, but now I realize that the sword has made me too obsessed in fighting Morro. But this isn't my fight. It's your's. _You're_ the water ninja. If anything, you should be the one to take it."

As Nya reached forward Kai closed his eyes. However, instead of taking the sword Nya laughed. Kai cautiously opened one eye.

"Kai...I never really wanted the sword. It's like I said when we were in the temple. I felt pressured by having so much weight on our victory against Morro. I panicked and, honestly, I thought that the sword was kind of getting to you. But, now, well, let me just show you. Stand back everyone."

Once everyone moved back Nya held out her hands and suddenly jumped into a whirl of spinjitzu. The tornado of water grazed the crystals at the top of the chamber before Nya spun to a stop.

Nya grinned at the ninja's baffled expressions. "It wasn't easy, but the chamber taught me a few things. Mostly, that I need to trust my water powers and not take the easy way out with the sword." Nya shrugged. "Water takes patience."

There a few moments of silence before Kai's shocked expression broke into a smile. Kai grabbed Nya and lifted her up. "That's my little sister!"

"Kai!" Nya's face flushed. "I'm not a little kid anymore!"

As everyone laughed while Kai put Nya down Cole clapped her back. "Well, there will be a lot more of that now that you'll be with us on missions. Teasing and affection is kind of our specialty. We wouldn't be ninja without it."

"I know that I'm old, but I hope that I didn't take that long in the chamber. That would be embarrassing."

Everyone turned to see Wu standing in the doorframe, watching the scene in amusement.

Cole went to greet Wu. "Glad to see that you're here Sensei. Lead the way."

Wu started to walk ahead of everyone, bringing the ninja into focus. The chamber was breathtaking. Huge chunks of ice weaved through the underwater cavern and into the distance. It was cooler than in the other rooms, showing their progression down the First Spinjitzu Master's tomb.

As the ninja gasped in amazement, following behind him, Wu started to feel more at ease. Although he couldn't fix the errors that created Morro to be the person he was today he wouldn't let that distract him from caring for his students.

Wu suddenly stopped in front of one of the ice blocks, confusion on his face as he saw that behind his reflection his students were noticeably aged.

Kai took a step back, touching his face where lines had appeared in his reflection. "What is this, one of those funny mirrors at Mega Monster Amusement Park?"

Wu took stock of his own shocked reflection and sighed. Just when he felt closer to his father the man shelled out more of his mysteries.

"I believe that Misako found a note about the ice in the chambers in one of the scrolls she gathered," Wu explained, turning to Zane.

Zane lifted up his arm. "I cut off communication when we were going through our individual challenges. It will take me a moment to readjust the signal."

After typing in a few commands Misako's voice crackled through the communicator.

"Have you found Morro?" She asked breathlessly.

Nya looked apologetic. "Sorry, we haven't seen him or any of the other ghosts for that matter. We actually called because we have a question on the tomb."

"Ah, yes, I apologize," Misako said with embarrassment. "Let me get my scrolls. I assume that you've passed the first challenge?"

"We just finished," Cole said. "Now we're in this cavern covered in ice. Do you know why the ice is showing us older in our reflections? And how come I can't see mine?"

"There is a passage here concerning the reflections. 'A spinjitzu master doesn't look ahead to tomorrow, but makes the best of today.' No one has been able to make a record of the reflections, but it is believed to show the individual years into the future."

Immediately the ninja became more engrossed in their reflections. True to Misako's word, it seemed to be the case, with their reflections noticeably aged and wearing similar robes.

Jay shook his hand in front of Zane's reflection. "Aw, Zane looks exactly the same. There's no cool upgrades! All that's different is the robe!"

Zane examined his reflection. "With Borg technology as it is, I'm sure that would be possible. Perhaps my future self prefers to remain as close to my original design as possible. Besides Jay, these aren't simple robes. These are a master's robes, referring to our individual elements."

Jay's expression grew thoughtful. "A master, huh?" As he turned to look at his reflection he grinned. "Oh cool, I have an eyepatch!"

His reflection's grin matched his own. Suddenly, his reflection started to move, reaching out his hand. Nya was talking to Misako through the communicator, so she didn't notice her reflection also reaching out her hand to join Jay's.

Jay's mouth gaped open. After a few seconds he shook his head. "Um, Zane do you see what I'm seeing?"

As Zane turned, so did Nya. Her expression was confused, but polite.

"See what Jay?"

Jay stammered, so Zane stepped in. "Are you not interested in your reflection Nya?"

Nya shrugged. "I'm not too fond of all this destiny stuff after the incident at Cloud Kingdom. Besides, didn't Misako say that we weren't supposed to look ahead? I think it's a trick to be honest."

"That is understandable, given the circumstances," Zane said quickly before Jay could interrupt. "I agree in that we should be more focused. I'm going to turn off the signal with Misako so that we can focus on this challenge. If that is alright with her of course."

"I understand," Misako replied. "In the meantime, I'll have to pilot the Destiny's Bounty closer to your location." Misako sighed. "Ronin's betrayal is going to be harder to deal with than I thought. I'll see you later. Be safe."

As the signal fizzled out Cole looked at the ice. While everyone else's reflections stared back at him there was an empty gap where he was standing. Cole felt his stomach twist.

"If I can't see my reflection then that must mean…" Cole shook his head. "There has to be something I'm missing. Maybe I'm not looking hard enough."

As Cole stepped closer and the reflections came into focus he saw the image of the doors they had exited behind them. Suddenly, one of the doors opened and Morro stepped out. He looked around before his gaze settled on the ninja. A crooked smile spread across his face.

Cole shook his head in his daze. "Morro has things planned out more than we thought. Come on, we have to find the exit."

Hearing this Morro laughed as the ninja ran through the corridors of ice. His voice echoed throughout the cavern as they rounded the corner.

"Face it, it was through sheer luck that you managed to get through your elemental doors. This time, I wouldn't count on it. And when I procure the realm crystal and your traitor friend won't be here to use his vehicle to get you out of here you'll be left to rot!"

A gust of wind hurled towards them, pushing them into a dead end. The ice wall stood high before them, making them turn back.

Beams of energy hit the ceiling, sending icicles crashing down at them.

Kai unsheathed the sword of sanctuary and hissed, seeing the reflection of icicles continuing to hurl towards them. "He's not going to stop here. He's planning on getting rid of us for good."

Suddenly, a large icicle fell towards where Wu was standing. Wu grabbed his makeshift staff and used it to spin out of the way just before it fell down, its sharp edge glinting.

Wu panted, pulling the staff up. "He's unstable. Morro will not hesitate to do the unthinkable."

"I know!" Jay said suddenly, grabbing two of the icicles and jumping onto them. "We can sled like Zane showed us through the maze!"

"I don't know you, but I'm getting tired of this guy. If we run away, we're just giving him all the more reason to feel secure with his power. I say we give him a taste of his own medicine," Cole said. "I have a plan."

After the ninja huddled together and pulled back Kai groaned. "Why do I have to be the bait?"

"No offense, but you suck at skating," Jay said. As Kai shot Jay an angry look Jay bit his lip nervously. "You also have the sword of sanctuary. Yeah, that's what I meant to say."

Nya looked back. "Here he comes. Everybody spread out!"

The chamber was filled with blistering wind as Morro stepped forward. The ninja went to skate in different directions, but Kai had barely made any progress, cursing as he struggled with the icicles.

Morro smirked. "This will be too easy." As he caught up to Kai he held out his hand. "It looks like you're having trouble there red ninja. I'm sure that Lloyd will want me to fix that."

As a beam of energy was aimed towards his legs, Kai narrowly skid out of the way and threw his sword up to aim it at Morro's throat.

Morro gasped and tried to reach for it, but Kai kept his grip firm as they slid down the chamber.

"I don't know why you've decided to go after my friend, but I'm not going to let you flaunt his powers any longer." Kai grabbed the sword and flipped it to butt the handle into Morro's stomach.

Morro lost his balance as he fell back. Zane expertly slid back to catch his arm.

"It's ice to see you!"

"What?"

Zane threw him back, sending him down the ice chamber.

Morro cursed, and grabbed his arm as he tried to stand up.

Cole stepped from his hiding place. "Now it's my turn."

Smirking, Cole spun up to the ceiling with airjitzu. Slamming into the icicles with his shoulder he sent them hurdling down to where Morro was standing.

"No!"

Morro tried to move out of the way, but the icicles started to trap him in. Breathing heavily he looked through the small openings in the icicle barrier and held out his hand, about to send a blast of energy.

"I wouldn't try that if I were you," Nya said. Above her hands she controlled a small ball of water and sent it close to Morro's face. Morro flinched. "Even though you technically can't be harmed by water since you're possessing Lloyd, I doubt that being drenched in it is a pleasant experience."

As Nya smiled Cole, Zane, and Kai went to stand next to her. Morro growled and grabbed the icicle bars.

Wu flipped next to them. Locking his gaze with Morro emotion flickered across his face before he pointed his makeshift staff in between the icicle bars. His expression was unforgiving.

"Your own corruption for power will be your undoing Morro. That was why you could never be the green ninja. Not because of your abilities or your social position. It is because of your childish nature and need to prove yourself to make up from your own shortcomings."

"So now you spout some lessons of wisdom." Morro spat. "Where were you when I left the monastery for all those years old man? Where were you I needed you?"

"Stop blaming others for your own decisions Morro! This was the life you chose. While I admit that I have made mistakes, I have done my best to make the most of today. You cling to the past."

Morro's mouth gaped open. As Wu stood firm Jay's voice echoed throughout the chamber.

"Guys! I found the way out! Misako was right-we weren't supposed to be looking ahead, we were supposed to be looking _below_."

As the ninja followed Jay's voice Morro yelled after them.

"You can't leave me here, Wu! I'm not some problem you can run away from anymore!"

After their voices faded Morro fell onto his knees and gritted his teeth. The lengths he had taken to assume Lloyd under his control and get the justice he deserved, only to have it thwarted by a stupid ring of icicles.

"If you think this is going to stop me you underestimate me, just like you always have Wu," Morro whispered. Standing up, he smiled, and his eyes shined with a new kind of madness and determination.

The ice blocks reflected an explosion of green. The icicles shattered and Morro wiped his mouth, walking away from the wreckage.

His eyes followed to where the ninja had run off to. As he came to a large hole in the ice he chuckled.

"Don't look ahead, but below. Clever, but you should have covered your tracks more."

Morro's gaze landed on the ice blocks pressed against the cavern walls. Nothing stared back at him. Frowning, Morro walked forward, and still seeing nothing in his reflection, he slammed his fist against the ice. It cracked, but still showed nothing.

Morro stepped back. Briefly, he recalled what he heard the ninja discussing before he decided to show himself.

" _There is a passage here concerning the reflections. 'A spinjitzu master doesn't look ahead to tomorrow, but makes the best of today.' No one has been able to make a record of the reflections, but it is believed to show the individual years into the future."_

"No...I refuse to let destiny control me any longer!"

Turning back to the hole, Morro jumped down.

* * *

The ninja landed in the final chamber. The cavern roared with the sound of rushing water, with a river bending through the dark rocks. A large statue stood in the center. Although most statues give off an aura of importance and wealth the figure was instead kneeling his head in respect to them. Their face was hidden behind their hands, but Wu still inhaled suddenly, emotions washing over his face as he stared at the statue solemnly.

"My father…"

Recognition flashed over their faces and the ninja hastily bowed. They took a few moments of silence as they knelt in respect to the creator of Ninjago. When Wu began to stand again the ninja took it as a sign to follow. As they looked up at the statue with wonder Kai stepped forward to the statue.

In his hands the statue held a shining, blue crystal.

Quickly, Kai moved to grab it. When nothing happened he turned the crystal around in his hands. The crystal reflected his image. A smile broke over his face.

"We did it." He turned to face the others. "We got the realm crystal!"

"Wait!"

Morro, in his ghostly form, stood on a rock overlooking the river. Loosely, he held up Lloyd. Lloyd was pale and, without Morro possessing him, he looked thin. His golden hair was lighter, almost like snow. It was difficult to tell which one of the figures was a ghost.

"Give me the realm crystal and in exchange I'll give you Lloyd." Morro straightened. "That was what you were trying to do the whole time, wasn't it? Or do you really not care for your friend?"

The rushing water roared in the silence.

Kai seethed, and moved to step forward, but Nya held him back.

"Kai, we have to think this through! You can't give him the realm crystal on a whim-that's practically giving Morro the key to taking over Ninjago!"

Kai shrugged her off. "So what are we supposed to do? Leave Lloyd? Look at him, Morro's possession is destroying him!" After a moment of silence Kai turned to the others when no one stood up to defend him. "Don't tell me you guys agree with her."

"We are not hesitating because we do not care for Lloyd," Zane said. He tried to keep his voice reasonable, but could not prevent the emotion from seeping into his voice. "It is...a hard dilemma to face. I myself am torn between logic and my need to help our brother."

Kai scoffed, looking down.

"Tick tock," Morro taunted. "What will it be?"

Kai turned to Morro. "We'll give you the realm crystal."

"No, Kai! What are you doing!?" Jay protested.

"Excellent choice. But first, you give me the realm crystal. Otherwise, no deal."

Kai slipped the crystal behind his back. His hands sparked with fire before throwing the realm crystal to Morro.

Morro laughed and caught it with his free hand. His face suddenly contorted as the crystal burned him. Gasping, he dropped Lloyd and the crystal down into the river below him.

"No!"

Kai ran alongside the river, the others trailing behind him. The shock of the water had made Lloyd wake up, but he was weak and struggling to keep his head above the water.

"K...ai?"

Lloyd's voice broke off as his head slipped down under the water.

"Lloyd!"

Kai held out his hand and cursed. Lloyd was too far away. Kai forced himself to look at the water. Water which grabbed and pulled you down until the oxygen was forced out of your lungs...Kai took a deep breath and plunged in.

When he first submerged Kai started to panic. He moved frantically, before his gaze landed on Lloyd. Swimming forward, Kai put his arm around Lloyd's waist before pushing them up. After breaking the surface of the water Kai breathed heavily.

"I haven't seen you in water since you were five," Nya grinned. Her smile vanished as she saw how much Kai was struggling in keeping himself and Lloyd upright. She held out her hands. "Hold on!"

Lifting up the water, Nya threw her arm back as it crashed against the land and carried them both onto the shore.

Kai coughed and Zane helped support him up. Zane grinned. "Let's just make sure that no one else falls in." Lifting up his hands the river became covered in a layer of ice. "I wasn't aware of it at first, but you held the crystal behind your back to warm it with your powers, didn't you?"

Kai shrugged, his own hand lighting with fire, but he smirked. "I do listen to you Zane. Even if it can be boring analytic stuff I don't understand."

Cole laughed easily with the rest of the ninja, but his expression suddenly darkened as his gaze turned to the river.

Morro was running across the ice that Zane had created. The realm crystal was bobbing in the section of the river that hadn't been frozen, heading towards the waterfall. As he reached the end of the ice Morro leaned forward, his hand grazing the realm crystal.

Cole ran onto the ice, tackling Morro.

"I don't think so," Cole said, with some amusement in his voice as he pinned Morro down.

Morro hissed and before Cole could react, he pried himself free and threw Cole off of him with his legs.

Cole coughed at the impact on the ice. As he looked up he saw Morro feverish expression as Morro turned to him.

"Can't you ever just leave me alone?!" Morro hissed.

Cole groaned, forcing himself to stand up. His eyebrows rose. "What are you-"

Morro jumped off with the waterfall as the realm crystal went over the edge. Using a jet of wind Morro propelled himself out of the water's way and grabbed the realm crystal with his free hand.

Cole ran to the edge. He shielded his eyes as the chamber glowed with a bright light, but as he looked again Morro was gone. The only sight was the water falling down into the pool of water below them.

Jay's voice broke Cole's stupor.

"Cole! Are you alright?"

Cole quickly stepped back, seeing how close he was to the waterfall. Shaking his head, he went to join the others.

Cole gave them no room to question him. "Morro went down the waterfall to get the realm crystal," Cole said grimly. "He must have used it transport himself into another realm when he went over the edge."

"Then we're trapped here," Jay said glumly. "We can't have Lloyd stay down here any longer. I hate to think what Morro did to him."

Everyone turned to Lloyd. He was laying on the ground, but Kai was supporting his head up. Wu stood next to his nephew, the worry at Lloyd's appearance clear in the lines in his face. Lloyd's breath was shallow. It looked like he could fade away at any moment.

Suddenly, the sound of rising water echoed throughout the cavern. Nya ran to the waterfall's edge and grinned.

"I think we found our way out of here."

* * *

"I'm sorry about the deal with Morro. Trust me, it wasn't out of my own will once I realized that he wasn't going to uphold his side of the bargain. Kid's a loose cannon waiting to explode."

Ronin pressed the controls to send R.E.X up the to the surface.

The Destiny's Bounty floated near them. They had spent the whole day in the tomb, the morning sun replaced by the sunset, turning the water golden.

Ronin hissed while pressing the lever to open the top hatch, grabbing his arm.

"I'm lucky he didn't break it." Ronin sighed, turning around in his chair. "I understand if you want nothing to do with me. Heck, I don't blame you guys if you throw me in the middle of the ocean." Ronin fiddled with his hat. "I'm not that good at these apology things."

"I think that we have all seen the lengths that Morro will go to," Wu said. "We can hardly blame you for what transpired. Besides, your deal with Morro was less than secretive. I guessed as much when you first arrived at the temple."

Ronin started to hack. After regaining his breath he turned to Wu. "You need to give me a warning before dropping something like that next time. Why did you go along with it?"

"Truthfully, I wanted to see Morro for myself. I knew that he might change his plans if I revealed my suspicions. But now I fear that I have given up on him completely. I feel that he is far from my reach."

"Well, you got to see him, that's for sure. I had a close-up of his friends when they started to surround me."

As Ronin reached forward to pull the lever to send R.E.X up, Nya stood in front of the control panel.

"Don't even think about abandoning us again. You proved that you can help us if you took on all of those ghosts at once. We're going to need your help. Consider yourself an honorary member."

Ronin turned over the bracelet Nya gave him. "A bracelet? Isn't it the guy that usually gives this type of thing?"

Nya huffed. "It's not just a bracelet! It was for my Samurai X mech, but since some ghosts decided to steal it and I'm the water ninja now I'm letting you have it. It should notify you when there's trouble in Ninjago by beeping." Nya allowed herself a small smile. "And where there's trouble you'll know that's where you'll find us."

"You'd give this to me after everything that's happened?" Ronin asked, bewildered, but he felt his heart warming at the gesture.

"Don't get too used to it." Nya smirked. "We'll see you later Ronin."

After she jumped onto the Bounty the hatch closed and R.E.X started to propel up. Kai carried Lloyd across the deck before Misako ran forward.

"Lloyd! Is he alright?"

"He hasn't woken up yet, but-"

Kai stopped as Lloyd opened his eyes. "Mom?"

Misako kissed his forehead. "Everything's going to be alright now."

"Wait...Kai?" Lloyd looked up and behind Kai to see the other ninja on the deck. His tired expression suddenly grew alert as he tried to stand up. Kai helped him stand up while throwing his arm around his shoulder.

"Morro isn't just trying to be the green ninja to get revenge. He's planning on releasing all of the ghosts from the Cursed Realm by getting the realm crystal."

Cole stepped forward to put his hand on Lloyd's shoulder. "Hey, don't worry about it. You need to get some rest. We'll figure out a way to deal with Morro."

Lloyd squinted his eyes to focus on Cole. "Why is Cole…?"

"Cole's right green machine," Kai said. "You've had a long couple of weeks. I'll help you lay down in our old room."

"I'm so glad that you're all okay," Lloyd said quietly. "After I broke free from his possession on the Wailing Alps he didn't let me see anything. I thought that he might have done something to you to make possessing me easier…"

Lloyd's voice trailed off as he slumped over. Kai helped to support him up.

"I'm going to stay with him in case anything happens. Come on Lloyd."

As Kai helped Lloyd walk across the Bounty's deck Jay bit his lip.

"Sensei, is everything really going to be alright? I mean, I know that we have Lloyd and our powers back, but if Morro has the realm crystal-"

"There is still a way that we can prevent Morro from releasing the Preeminent. Our opportunity will be slim though." Wu sighed. "Come, while Lloyd regains his strength we must gather supplies." Wu looked up at the sunset. "I see what has driven Morro to do what he did, but seeing what he did to my nephew, I will see to it that he is stopped at all costs."


	9. Turning Tides

Chapter 9: Turning Tides

 **Before we get started, I'd like to credit my best friend Nicole de Lancret 22 for helping me edit this chapter. If any of you are interested in Fire Emblem, I'd suggest checking out her story!**

 **Steampunk Wilson: Hah, yeah, the last chapter ended up being really long XD. A plus though was that it gave me a lot of room to focus on everyone in the chamber sequences. I love the Nya and Kai relationship, but I thought it would interesting to have them disagree since we don't get to see the side of their relationship. But it's nice to balance that with Jay and Cole friendship :)**

 **WindNinja333: Developing Zane was definitely a priority of mine! One of my main qualms with Possession is how Zane is treated, especially since the ninja went through so much to rescue him in season four, so I'm glad to hear that the change worked well!**

 **lloydskywalkers: Honestly, your feedback always helps to motivate my writing with how much time you put into your reviews, I really appreciate it! Looking back at Possession episodes, I didn't realize how much Nya isn't included despite becoming a part of the team. The same goes for Wu and Misako to an extent, so I'm really happy to hear that you liked how I've written them in :D. Since the ninja don't have their powers for most of the season, I thought that it would interesting to emphasize how their elements reflect each of their characteristics, making the moment they regain them more impactful. I'm so happy that you enjoyed it because it took me ages to write all of those scenes XD.**

 **RandomDragon2.0: Morro might have the crystal, but we all know that Lloyd is the greatest treasure of all :). I felt like I rushed the fight scene at the end, but I'm glad to hear that you enjoyed it!**

 **Allison v: As much as I've enjoyed writing the possession dynamic between Morro and Lloyd, I have to agree. After all that he's been through it felt good to finally write the moment where he's with everyone again.**

 **StoriesAreMagic: My first introduction to Ronin was in Skybound with the scene where he was capturing all the ninja. I had fallen behind in the series at that time, but my brother was watching it and needless to say, it took me a while to warm up to Ronin after watching that XD. He's a great character though underneath his exterior, but I can understand your thoughts. I had a lot of fun examining all of the ninja and relating their elements to their personalities. As I was writing it I felt like the Kai scene was a bit ridiculous, but then I remembered that it was Kai, and decided to leave it in XD.**

Kai propped himself up against his pillow. Although he was exhausted, he felt obligated to watch Lloyd, who was laying in the bed across from him. A few hours had passed since Kai laid Lloyd in his bed, and since then Lloyd had barely stirred.

Kai groaned and fell back onto his bed, staring at the ceiling. He failed his promise to protect Lloyd. It was only after they had gotten their powers back that he was able to help Lloyd, and even then, his fear of water had almost drowned them. Kai closed his eyes, berating himself with his thoughts, when he heard Lloyd start to whimper in his sleep.

Kai threw off his sheets and ran to Lloyd's bedside. He shook Lloyd gently, trying to ignore how thin he felt. Looking at him up close made Kai's stomach churn with guilt. The possession had taken its toll, his skin sallow with the usual life in his face completely gone. Lloyd looked listless, almost like he could slip through Kai's hold. Were they too late? Would he ever be able to function on his own again? Or would he always need to have Morro in order to ever be himself again?

Kai forced his worries to the back of his mind. They couldn't change what happened. All he could do was help Lloyd through this.

"Lloyd, it's okay. I'm here. You're on the Bounty."

"Morro…" Lloyd tried to fight against Kai's hold as he mumbled to himself. "Leave me alone! What else can you possibly do to me?"

Kai shook him again and Lloyd became still. Wearily, he opened his eyes. It relieved Kai to see that there was still life in his eyes, even if he was fighting off the sleepiness in his gaze.

"Kai?" Lloyd slurred. "Is this another memory?"

"Lloyd," Kai said firmly, kneeling so that he was eye level with him. "You're not under Morro's possession anymore."

Lloyd blinked a few times, taking in his surroundings. As he realized that they were in the Bounty's quarters, he laughed nervously while fiddling with the blanket. "Oh, so you heard that…"

"Come on," Kai said, putting his hand on Lloyd's back as he helped Lloyd sit up. "Let's sit on the bed. I want you to be honest with me."

Lloyd looked down. "I don't know what you mean. I'm fine now. You guys rescued me."

"No, you're not," Kai snapped. "No one would be fine after what you went through. You're sick and exhausted-"

Seeing Lloyd's expression, Kai winced. He took a deep breath to control his temper before facing Lloyd seriously. "You don't have to always hold things in Lloyd. We're all here for you."

Lloyd opened his mouth to protest, but froze. Tears started to roll down his cheeks. Kai rubbed his back as he started to cry.

After a few minutes Lloyd started to regain his breath. He stared at the floor vacantly and spoke to Kai in a strained voice. "When Morro was possessing me he unintentionally formed a bond with me. Basically, we could see each other's memories if we tried to, even if the other didn't consent to it."

Kai's temper instantly flared. "He invaded your privacy without a second thought!?"

"Kai, I was the one to through his memories first!" Lloyd shouted. After a few moments as realization dawned over his face he looked down, embarrassed. "I didn't look through his memories intentionally. But that didn't stop Morro from accusing me. He...looked through everything in my past to break me. When he was done he told me that I would never see you again. That I was going to be under his possession forever. He left me in the darkness and I started to believe him." Lloyd's voice turned into a whisper. "I started to think that maybe I deserved it."

"Don't say that," Kai said quickly. "He was trying to manipulate you. If he could bend you to see his point of view it would make it easier for him to control your body."

"Yeah, maybe…" Lloyd trailed off.

Kai exhaled as silence overtook them. "I haven't been honest with you either," he admitted. "Since you told me what's been bothering you…I'll tell you what's been bothering me. When Morro possessed you, I broke down. I promised you that I would protect you, but I was helpless against Morro at the monastery. Everytime we faced Morro and he got away I started to feel more and more useless. Now that you're finally here, I want to keep up on my promise. But I can't do that if you keep doubting yourself. The whole team needs you in this fight. What Morro did wasn't right. I don't care what his motivation was or if he told you otherwise."

Lloyd watched Kai with his mouth open before his lips cracked into a smile. "I'm glad that I'm back with everyone. I'm not going to let Morro control me just because of a few weeks." Lloyd's smile grew into a smirk. "I'm happy that you care about me, but aren't you getting a little too overprotective?"

"All I heard was someone asking for a noogie," Kai said teasingly.

"Wait, Kai-"

Kai pulled Lloyd into a hug and tousled his hair. Lloyd started to laugh. Although his ribs twisted in pain he couldn't stop grinning. After a while Lloyd fell back down onto the bed.

"Okay, that's enough, stop it Kai!"

"Promise me that you'll tell us when stuff is bothering you. Then I'll leave you alone green machine."

Lloyd held up his hand. "Ninja's word."

"Good." Kai threw the blankets over Lloyd. "Are you sure that you'll be okay for the night?"

"I'm not a kid anymore."

Kai shrugged before falling onto his own mattress, the events of the day coming back to him all at once. "Call it big brother instincts," he slurred. "Goodnight Lloyd."

Lloyd closed his eyes with a small smile on his face as exhaustion overcame him. "Night..."

* * *

Sweeping down on his dragon Jay laughed before performing a twirl, lightning sparks dancing across the dragon's blue scales. "Hah, I forgot how good it felt to ride our elemental dragons!"

"I'd watch what you say. Remember the last time we had to go to the Underworld?" Cole grinned. "I'm surprised that any of us could walk after picking up that speed. But we still have to keep ourselves at our best game. Sensei said that anything could throw us off, and I don't want a Skullkin getting the best of me because we were distracted with having our powers again."

After Kai left with Lloyd to take him to their room, Wu had sat down with the other ninja to explain how they could prevent the Preeminent's release. Nya placed a candle in the center of the table as it grew into night and Wu brewed a pot of Olga's tea to keep everyone alert. Blowing on his own cup, the candle's flickering light illuminating his face, he looked up at his students.

"As you all know, my brother was banished to the Underworld after he tried to steal the Golden Weapons. The Underworld is the realm where spirits unable to come to terms with their own passing are reanimated. Otherwise known as the Skullkin. However, there is a place in the Underworld said to be even farther from Ninjago than the Underworld. A pit where those more despicable than the Skullkin are imprisoned after being refused entry to the Departed Realm: the Cursed Realm. The Cursed Realm is the entity that the ghosts rever as the Preeminent. They will release her by journeying to the Underworld and throwing the crystal into the abyss, allowing her to cross realms. However, since you have regained your elemental powers, you have the ability to go to the Underworld with your elemental dragons."

"So then all we have to do is beat Morro at his own game!" Jay said excitedly, cracking his knuckles.

Wu sighed. "I'm afraid that it is easier said than done. You will be dangerously close to the Cursed Realm. Your powers will be a great asset, but you must not let that fact cloud your judgement."

Jay shook his hand, making the recollection fade away. "Yeah yeah, I remember. Be alert and cautious at all times. Use your dragons to go to the Cursed Realm."

"How did you guys learn how to create your elemental dragons in the first place?"" Nya asked, sitting on the back of Kai's dragon.

Kai lifted the dragon up to shoot out a stream of fire. "Hold on there water lily. You just learned how to do spinjitzu. It'll take you a while to get up to my level."

Nya rolled her eyes, but smiled at her brother's antics. Making sure that she was holding onto the dragon tightly, Nya looked back to see Zane maneuvering his titanium dragon behind them.

"How is Lloyd doing?"

"Remarkably well considering his condition," Zane responded before his tone grew sharp. "But let me remind you all that I highly advised Lloyd against doing any strenuous activity. If needed, I'm sure that Misako would look after him on the Bounty and ensure that he receives a proper treatment."

Lloyd teetered his dragon to Zane's side. His face was flushed with excitement. "It's fine Zane, I want to be able to help. Besides, it feels good to be with everyone again."

"Once we pass this mountain, it's time to give it everything you've got," Cole said, leaning forward. "We don't have our dragons guiding us this time, so it's all on us."

After the dragons passed the mountain in blurring colors they started to dive down. Just before striking the ground a portal appeared and the dragons plunged through the earth, ripping the barrier between the two realms.

The walls were covered in layers of bedrock. Torches placed along them lit the dim passage that the dragons flew through. The corridor eventually started to broaden and the dragons entered the vast Underworld. Large pieces of desolate land floated above the darkness, connected by dozens of rundown, half collapsed bridges where Skullkin slowly trudged from one to the other. The dragons spiraled to the largest land piece in the center where Garmadon's previous lair dominated. The ninja's excited laughter turned into yells as the dragons rocketed towards the lair.

The dragons crashed into the fortress, tearing through the floors until landing at the ground level, sending debris and bones at the Skullkin.

Lloyd coughed as his green dragon dissipated. "Is everyone okay?"

"Are you okay?" Kruncha yelled, flailing his arms in distress. "What about our fortress?"

Nuckal ran forward. "No no no! My donut collection!"

Kai groaned, feeling his head. He had landed on a chest propped against the wall and broken through it. Pulling himself out, the chest was revealed to hold a stockpile of donuts with varying types of frosting and flavors. Kai felt his back and groaned as his hand came back covered in jelly. "Great, now my gi is covered in crushed donuts. Don't tell me that you were planning on eating these. How can skeletons eat?"

Kai was shoved to the side as Nuckal ran forward to scoop up the remains of his collection into his mouth with frantic movements.

"Actually..." Kai said, looking on with disgust. "I'd rather not know."

The Skullkin's voices rose in protest. Holding up their weapons they stumbled forward, backing the ninja into the ruined fortress.

"We don't have time for this," Jay hissed as a Skullkin approached him with a raised axe. Jay easily dodged his attack and sent a spark of lightning at the Skullkin. The Skullkin jolted as the lightning darted over him before crashing down. "I say that we take them all down and get through here when we can!"

"We can't risk that," Lloyd cautioned. "We don't know where the Cursed Realm is and the last thing we need is more enemies." Lloyd stepped forward, holding out his hand. "Wait! We don't want to fight. We just want to speak to your ruler."

The Skullkin paused, looking at one another before realization dawned on their faces. They instantly cowered, dropping their weapons and scattering back.

Kruncha bowed, knocking down Nuckal to do the same. "Ignore our attack. We didn't know, well, that you were, you know-"

"Ooh, I know this one!" Nuckal said, raising his hand. "He's the one that beat the Overlord and converted Garmadon to the side of good!"

Krazi pulled his jester hat over his head. "His light!" He screeched. "It hurts!"

Bonezai, a mechanic of the Skull truck, held up his hammer eagerly, examining Zane. "Metal man has many good parts that I could use…"

"You idiot!" Kruncha said, throwing Bonezai back. "That's the guy that defeated the Overlord the second time!"

"That's a lot of good people," Nuckal said, scratching his head. "Does that even make this the Underworld anymore? It's more like...the Upstandingpeopleworld."

They suddenly grew silent as a Skullkin with a straw hat identical to Wu's pushed Nuckal back with a black staff. Breaking through the rest of the crowd, the Skullkin marked his progress by tapping his staff so that it echoed eerily throughout the cavern before stopping in front of Lloyd.

"Referring to your question Garmadon, I'm the new ruler of the Underworld, Commander Wyplash. I had to wait for Samukai and your father to bite the dust to earn this position. Don't think that I'll let you take it back easily."

Cole stepped in front of Lloyd, holding out his hands protectively. "Look, we just need to get to the Preeminent. We don't want anything to do with your position. It'll be a simple in and out mission."

Wyplash barked a laugh. "Do you think that I'm a fool? For centuries, ghosts have been trying to escape the Cursed Realm so that they can enter the Departed Realm. That's your plan, isn't it?" Wyplash extended his staff, which went through Cole's chest. "Got some friends to help, eh ghost?"

Cole's brow furrowed. His hands solidifying, he grabbed the end of the staff, flipping it up to knock Wyplash in the jaw. Wyplash fell back, moaning in pain. Cole pointed the staff at him. "I'm here with my friends to save Ninjago. If you have a problem with that, then I'm sure that I can arrange something by changing your get-up. Don't think that I didn't notice your attempts to impersonate Sensei Wu."

Wyplash swallowed, watching Cole carefully. "F-fine. I have enough sense to tell when you ninja won't give up until you get what you want. I'll lead you to the Preeminent, but whatever you want to do with it is up to all of you." Turning back, Wyplash gestured for the Skullkin to move aside before stepping onto one of the wooden bridges. The ninja moved to follow him, but, sheepishly, Wyplash turned back. "Um, but before we go, can I have my staff back?"

Cole rolled his eyes, throwing Wyplash the staff. The staff almost slipped between his hands, but after a few moments Wyplash stood up, adjusting his hat before giving the ninja a nervous grin.

Strolling forward, Wyplash led them across the bridges that connected the land pieces, making their way to a land piece that was distant from the others. Wyplash tapped his staff against the edge of the rock, where a staircase descended into the abyss.

"It's a ways down," Wyplash explained, turning back to eye the ninja nervously. "Just how does this help Ninjago? Releasing it-"

"That is our worry," Zane interrupted smoothly. "It is not us who are releasing the Preeminent, but a group of ghosts that have escaped from the Cursed Realm. That is why we are depending on your cooperation. When you return with your warriors, I suggest that you assume a defensive position before they arrive."

"R-right," Wyplash stuttered.

They descended in silence, the air growing cooler and darker. Kai lit his hand with fire, making their shadows stand tall against the cavern's walls. Eventually, the staircase ended and they reached solid ground, the floor of the Underworld. A few steps away from where they stood the ground sloped down again into a massive drop. Inside the pit a swirling vortex of purple gaped in the darkness.

"You don't want to go any further than this," Wyplash said, standing on the platform that overlooked the pit. "It's a one-way entrance without the crystal."

As his voice trailed off and echoed in the chamber, Wyplash coughed awkwardly. "So, the girl's a ninja now?"

Nya huffed. "You can go now. We have everything we need here."

As Wyplash's gaze went over all of the ninja he nodded, tripping back before scurrying up the staircase, leaving them on the platform.

"It sure is...big," Jay laughed, rubbing the back of his neck as he looked over the platform. "How are we going to prevent Morro from throwing in the realm crystal?"

Cole opened his mouth, but was interrupted by Lloyd.

"We're ninja, right?" Lloyd said. "Our best strategy is to wait it out and hide in the shadows. When they come, we ambush them. Remember, Morro hasn't faced any of us with our powers. We still have the chance to get the realm crystal and make it so that none of this ever happened."

"Sounds like a plan," Kai agreed. "The four of us will airjitzu onto the ledges while Lloyd and Nya will ambush them on the platform. When they arrive, we'll show them just who they messed with."

Nodding, the four airjitzued along the cavern wall while Lloyd and Nya pressed themselves against the platform's edge. When Cole landed on one of the ledges he let out a long breath he didn't realize that he was holding. Even if he was recovering, Lloyd was their leader. He didn't need protection unless the battle called for it.

Yang's words flashed through his mind.

"But the green ninja isn't with you anymore. You can't tell me that doesn't change things a little bit. Why, if you just didn't manage to rescue him, I suppose the position would fall to you. Although I guess you could always let things return to normal. Dead weight to the ninja team. A ninja without a purpose."

"It was temporary," Cole whispered to himself, trying to push the image of Yang and his mocking grin back. "After all that Lloyd went through, I don't have the right to be nostalgic."

The sound of the vortex swirling in the pit filled the silence. As his apprehension grew, Cole readied his aeroblade and took a deep breath, waiting in the dark.

* * *

Both finding his way into the Ninjago realm, and regrouping all of the ghost warriors had been an exhausting process of going back and forth between realms. On top of that, Morro had heard enough complaints about Ronin to make his patience run through the roof as he gathered everyone into a temporary hideout. Revisiting it, Morro knew that he should have gotten rid of the trickster before he posed such a problem.

Everything was slipping out of his control so fast that Morro barely had any time to process it. Losing Lloyd was a devastating blow to his ability to command. For so long, he had agonized in convincing the ghosts that Lloyd was necessary in avoiding suspicion from the citizens. After finally feeling the satisfaction of having the power that was rightfully his, it had been taken away as soon as it had come. That fact was hard to swallow considering the lengths he had to go through to subdue Lloyd.

As they worked in the hideout, preparing supplies for the trip to Underworld, Morro watched Bansha and Soul Archer from the corner of his eye. Bansha and Soul Archer had been whispering to one another since they arrived, not bothering to be discreet. Outwardly, Morro seethed, while his mind fumbled for a solution. The atmosphere was tense and the two would take advantage of it. Having the realm crystal in his possession was the only thing that still guaranteed his power.

Morro stood, making sure that the realm crystal was placed securely in the bag resting on his hip. The ghosts stopped working and turned to face him.

"There is no point in taking anymore time. We have waited for decades to release the Preeminent. If we wait any longer we are letting that opportunity slip past us, especially now that the ninja know our true goal."

Bansha laughed. "Now you have such lofty ideals? You never cared for releasing our mistress," Bansha accused. "All you ever wanted was to be the green ninja, the one prophesied to bring light and not the darkness that we intend to create. You were never truly on our side."

"I will not allow you to speak against me!" Morro shouted. "Do you really think that I don't care for the Preeminent? I have spent years following her command and only because of that loyalty did she place me above all of you. If you go against me, you are disobeying direct orders from her!"

The ghost's attention was fixed on them. As their argument escalated a ring of green circled around the two. Morro felt a rush of the nervousness as he recalled the fights that the Lost Boys had whenever someone's leadership was challenged. Adjusting his stance, Morro hid his emotions. The result of this argument could completely change their positions, and showing weakness would only give Bansha the advantage.

Bansha howled. It was clear that she had no intention of backing out. "I should have been the one our mistress chose!" She leaned towards Morro as she spat, "I never understood why she chose a ninja to do a warrior's job."

Morro seethed. Both of them stared the other down before Soul Archer's voice broke through the cave.

"Both of your words are strong, but it is your strength that will gain our loyalty. Show us which one of you can best the other in battle."

Soul Archer's argument was sound. The other ghosts were nodding in agreement. Morro cursed. This had been staged between the two.

Wrayth held up his chains wickedly. He was one of their strongest warriors and he often swayed the others. "Show us your spirit through battle!"

The ghosts cheered and the ring closed around them. There was no way to avoid it. Morro drew himself into a fighting stance. She'd get the fight she asked for, though he would be sure to dispose of her when it was finished.

Morro spun up with airjitzu as Bansha moved to strike him. As he fell back down, he kicked Bansha back and landed on his hands before flipping back up, sending a gust of wind that threw Bansha to the ground. As Bansha got up she chuckled before throwing her head back and shrieking.

The cave shook at Morro's feet. Looking up, Morro saw that pieces of rock were shaking and glowing green before falling where he was standing.

Morro hissed, avoiding the cursed rocks by blowing them back with a gust of wind. With a yell, Morro ran at her and the two kicked and punched at the other, falling back and forth in the ring.

Morro was beginning to overpower her. As he readied a final blow to her side, Bansha's eyes suddenly flashed red.

 _What do you guard most Morro?_

Bansha's voice echoed throughout his mind. Taking advantage of his surprise, Bansha moved to aim at his head, but Morro regained his focus and ducked her blow.

 _That's none of your concern. When did you gain the ability to-_

 _Read people's minds? You know nothing about me. Does it surprise you to hear that we have our own skills and motivations for releasing the Preeminent?_

Morro ignored her jab and flipped back to avoid another attack before landing a kick at her jaw. He ignored her cry of surprise.

 _Distracting me is a cheap tactic. Just give it up._

 _NO!_

Morro reeled back at the intensity of her scream in his mind. She was suddenly everywhere-prying through doors that should have closed and sweeping through memories to her amusement.

His head felt like it was being ripped open. As he panted Bansha approached him. With ease, she thrusted up his thoughts.

 _You hesitate. Only when we have all the pieces, do you secretly wonder if this is what you want. I will not let you interfere when we have come this far!_

As the pain grew more intense Bansha's eyes glowed darker until they were a shade of blood red.

 _I'll keep your insecurities a secret if you give your authority to me. Otherwise, I might slip my tongue._

Suddenly, she pulled the contact away and Morro fell down, gasping.

The excitement of the battle plunged into sudden silence. The mask over Bansha's mouth lifted.

Trembling, Morro got up, humiliation washing over him. The ghosts watched him avidly, waiting for his next move. Morro's gaze fell to Bansha. He felt the tip of Soul Archer's arrow nudge his back and he groaned before going back down to bow. He gritted his teeth.

"I...concede. My authority has become unfocused and flawed. Passing it to Bansha would be the best way to ensure success in releasing the Preeminent."

Soul Archer lifted up Bansha's arm, meeting the ghost's gazes squarely. "It is decided!"

* * *

The ghost's excited yells echoed throughout the Underworld's caverns. The dark walls were highlighted with green and the outlines of dozens of figures slowly descending down the staircase. The ninja exchanged glances from their hiding spots. The ghost's fervor showed that not only had they bested the Skullkin, but that the fight had encouraged them.

Morro was the first to come into view, Bansha following at his heel, her eyes feverishly focused on the vortex in the pit. He looked down, his gaze concentrated on the crystal before Bansha held up her hand, indicating for the ghosts to stay back as they reached the platform.

Bansha raised her voice. "Morro will have the honor of releasing the Preeminent," she said, a hint of sarcasm in her voice. "I'm curious, what will the mistress do when she discovers that he did not follow her authority and went after the green ninja?"

Morro did his best to ignore her and the ghost's approval. The realm crystal, once representing his last hold of power, was cruelly turned against him. While they all revered their leader, it was undeniable that the Preeminent was harsh and unforgiving. The Cursed Realm was a dark prison for those that didn't follow her. Morro never had to fear that judgement himself, having risen to a rank where he could comfortably watch others receive the Preeminent's punishments. Now he was pushed down to his lowest point, stripped of his authority and forced to perform the dangerous and unpredictable task of awakening her.

Morro forced his attention to the pit and the swirling vortex inside of it. It was drawn to the crystal's glow. It pulsed brighter as Morro stepped forward, eager to capture the crystal's light.

All the ghosts stepped back reflexively expect for Bansha. Only Bansha held no reservations toward their leader. She watched Morro eagerly, her hands shaking with anticipation.

Forcing his shaking hand over the pit, Morro turned his head back as the vortex inched forward.

Silently, and with the skill of having used his shrukiens for years, Zane threw an aeroblade. It cut through the air before slicing the crystal out of Morro's hand. Moving out of his hiding spot, Lloyd held up his hand to catch it. As the crystal shined in his hand Bansha's wailing shriek thundered throughout the cavern.

"It's an ambush! There must be more of them; make sure that none leave this place and that the crystal is secured!"

The ninja jumped down from the ledges and into the disorganized army. Spinning their aeroblades, Kai, Zane, Cole, and Jay sent the swarm of ghosts surrounding them into puffs of smoke. However, as the shock of the attack wore off, the row was quickly replaced by several warriors.

Before they could attack the ninja Nya spun through them with a tornado of water, vaporizing the ghosts into hisses of green smoke. As she came to a stop Nya panted as the ghosts crowded them again. Holding up her hands Nya sent out a stream of water, looking over her shoulder to see the four.

"I know that your powers aren't their weakness, but you're going to have to get creative! They aren't going to go down easily. This is what they've been working towards for years, probably even centuries."

"I see where you're going with this," Cole said, his hands illuminating as he placed his aeroblade on his back. He turned to Lloyd, seeing that he was having trouble fending off the ghosts while protecting the realm crystal. Cole closed his eyes before regaining his focus as he made his decision. "Distract them with your powers. All we have to do is keep them from Lloyd. Besides, showing off doesn't hurt. Earth!" With a grunt, Cole threw up his hands to pull several walls of earth, blocking the ghosts off from Lloyd. However, Morro slipped through unnoticed just before the wall shot up.

Kai spinjitzued onto the top of the walls. Running across it, he held out his arm to leave a trail of flames on the trapped ghosts below him. "Fiyah!' As he slid to the end of the ledge Kai grinned, holding up his hand as he controlled a crackling flame. Kai looked at the fire adoringly. "It's been too long buddy."

Using airjitzu, Jay flew over the army. "Lightning!" While still spinning in the air, Jay shot out lightning bolts, striking the ghosts below him. "Hah hah! Remind me to never take our powers for granted again!"

"Ice!" Zane exclaimed, rolling forward before holding out his hands and shooting a mist of ice into the air. "You just might be onto something Jay. By spraying ice where you're spinning-"

"It'll fall and create water when it reacts with Kai's fire…" Nya mused before looking up. "Zane, that's brilliant! I don't think any of us would have thought of that." Joining Zane's side Nya grinned slyly as she controlled a stream of water. "But I don't think that a little more will hurt. Water!"

As the battle was contained in the walls of earth Lloyd faced off Morro alongside the platform. The sound of the battle became muffled in his ears as his heart started to race.

As Morro stepped forward, Lloyd flinched on instinct. For a brief moment, he could see Morro flying into him as the events of the night at the monastery replayed in his mind.

Morro sensed his weakness. Feeling a sense of control return to him, Morro seized his opportunity. "This can be resolved easily Lloyd," Morro leered before he leaned in, his voice growing lower. "Give me the realm crystal."

With a massive amount of control, Lloyd pushed his fears back. Morro's relaxed stance with the way he held out his hand as if expected Lloyd to easily submit made his resentment rise.

"No!" Morro blinked in shock. Lloyd threw out his hand. "I'm not going to let you control me. This isn't just a personal conflict between you and me anymore. If you're going to drag Ninjago into this, then I want a fair fight."

Morro seethed. The opportunity fading, he drew himself into a battle stance, returning Lloyd's defiant glare. He switched tactics. "I'll entertain you with round two then. But don't be surprised if you have hard time keeping up. It seems that my possession did a little good for you." The corner of Morro's mouth rose. "You look terrible."

Lloyd hesitated, giving Morro the opportunity to charge forward. Lloyd's focus returned at the last second and he blocked Morro's swing, balancing the realm crystal in his other hand.

Morro hissed and in retaliation he tried to strike Lloyd at every possible opening. As he avoided his attacks Lloyd started to feel weaker and heavy. His vision lurched as he moved to avoid an attack. Morro took his chance. His desperate movements stopped and he slid forward to knock Lloyd's feet from under him.

Lloyd coughed, falling down closely to the edge of the platform, the crystal tumbling at Morro's feet. Lloyd pressed himself up just as Morro use his foot to kick the crystal up and snatch with it his hand. Lloyd's face darkened.

"I won't let you get away with this!"

Lloyd threw himself onto Morro, making them both fall back as Lloyd reached for the crystal. Pressing Morro against the cavern wall, Lloyd managed to grasp it. The crystal suddenly started to glow, surrounding them in a cloud of purple and blue. The Underworld walls fell around them, revealing lines of clouds as they were sent plummeting down into an elaborate city. The city was almost identical to Ninjago's ancient architecture, except that it was supported in the sky on large pieces of earth. A massive domed building with several windows stood in the center of the city, pillars and columns rising alongside it. Inside one of the towers in the city, a four armed man with orange skin and a long white beard looked through the window just as Morro and Lloyd fell down and out of view.

Morro grabbed one of pillars with his free hand and used it to slide down, landing in the city's square while Lloyd fell to the center of the building's roof. Just before he impacted, his body pulled on something instinctive and he was suddenly flying up. Lloyd cautiously opened one eye and saw that he was controlling the air around him in a cloud of green.

"Whoa!" Lloyd fell back in shock and he bounced back onto the building's roof. Lloyd held out his hands as he stood up, the shape of the roof making it difficult to balance. "Since when have I been able to do that?"

Morro ran across the cobblestone road, catching Lloyd's attention. Sliding down the roof, Lloyd saw Morro lifting the crystal, summoning another portal at the end of the road.

Lloyd jumped down, aiming to kick Morro. Morro turned back narrowly, elbowing him the chest before flipping back.

Lloyd held out his hands. Sweat started to shine on his forehead. Gritting his teeth, he shot a ball of energy at Morro.

Morro hissed in pain, bending over as he held his stomach. Lloyd looked at him, anger blazing in his eyes.

"If you really know everything about me, then you know that I won't give up easily. I'll do everything in my power to stop you, even if it hurts me in the process."

"Then it seems that we're in agreement," Morro spat. "This could have been avoided if he had just given me the realm crystal. You have only yourself to blame when I destroy you!"

Locking gazes there was a moment of silence before they ran at each other and threw several punches, falling back and forth between attacks.

Lloyd panted, jumping to the side to avoid a hurl of wind. His head was pounding as he tried to concentrate. His body protested, aching and feeling each attack tenfold, but he forced the warning bells back. Lloyd fought solely with the anger he had built towards Morro, making it harder for Morro to take him down. Morro groaned, looking back to see that the portal was closing while blocking an attack from Lloyd. He airjitzued into the portal, Lloyd on his heel.

They fell through several layers of thick clouds before Cloud Kingdom came into view. As they plummeted past a series of white towers, Morro kicked Lloyd back as he landed on one of the skiffs that was traversing through the air.

The monk operating it froze as Morro thudded on board. Nervously, he looked around before his gaze landed on the basket he brought with him. He grabbed the basket of food and quickly offered it to Morro, looking down.

"Hungry? I was going to have this for lunch, but…"

The monk flinched as Morro reached forward to snatch the basket. He threw up an apple, his eyes shining with amusement.

"You brought apples?" He asked. The monk nodded eagerly. Morro grabbed the monk by his collar. "Never try mocking me!" Morro threw the monk off, the monk screaming as he fell down.

As Lloyd formed his dragon the monk grabbed the dragon's tail, clawing onto the scales desperately.

"I distracted him long enough for Nobu's plan," the monk said.

Lloyd jumped and the dragon jerked in response. His adrenaline faded as he turned back to face the monk. "What are you talking about? Who's Nobu?"

The monk shook his head, pointing forward. "Don't heed me. We are only helping you with Ninjago's destiny."

Morro used a current of wind to push the skiff forward. Standing at the front of the helm, Morro turned back to see the dragon falling behind.

"Finally," he said, turning back. His smirk grew as he saw several monks raising their arms in protest underneath him. "At least you'll have a few friends to keep you company."

Holding up the realm crystal, the skiff was suddenly pulled back. Morro grabbed the edge of the skiff as he looked back. "No!"

A small boy with a shock of orange hair stood in front of the group, holding out his hands as he controlled the skiff to fall back down. Nobu faced the other monks.

"Bring out Nimbus!"

Two monks walked forward, guiding a giant creature with bulging eyes and a mass of brown hair. When Nimbus's eyes landed on Morro and the crystal shining in his hands he roared, pounding his chest.

As the creature swiped at him Morro kicked him in the nose. Nimbus howled, grabbing his face as he fell back. Morro's attacks were vicious and unforgiving. As the creature teetered back Morro returned his attention to the crystal. When his back was turned Nimbus struck Morro, sending the crystal bouncing on the clouds.

Nobu caught it and ran to Lloyd as he fell down from his dragon.

"Here," he panted. "Morro must go with you to the next realm."

As Lloyd held the crystal it started to glow. "Wait! Why are you helping me? I don't even know who you are."

Nimbus slugged forward, holding a struggling Morro.

"Me? I am no one important, but if it consolidates you, I'm sure that Kai remembers me. Now go!"

Nimbus threw Morro in the portal as it closed around Lloyd.

Lloyd fell with Morro on top of him. They tumbled down a slope, reversing their positions until they reached the end of the hill and Morro's head hit a rock jutting out of the ground.

Lloyd stood up shakily as Morro hissed in pain. Hills shrouded in mist stood across the landscape. Everything was either a shade of dark purple or consumed entirely by shadows. The sky was black except for a band of red that stretched into the endless terrain.

Morro threw his arms around Lloyd's neck. Lloyd struggled, trying to throw Morro off, but Morro laughed and tightened his grip. His vision blurring, Lloyd's gaze fell down. Summoning his last bit of strength, he slammed his foot onto Morro's feet.

Morro yelled and released Lloyd. As Lloyd put his hands on his knees, regaining his breath, Morro was at him again. Before Morro could strike him Lloyd avoided it narrowly by jumping back.

"Why do you want to release the Preeminent?" Lloyd gasped as Morro continued to swing at him. "Destroying Ninjago because you didn't get what you wanted is shallow. If that's what your goal really is, then you never deserved to become the green ninja."

"You don't understand anything," Morro snarled. "If I don't return with the realm crystal, what do you think will happen?"

Lloyd's eyes widened. "Bansha usurped your control…"

Morro faltered, but soon anger flashed in his features. "It wasn't a fair fight! She used magic against me. If I would have known that she was a sorceress, do you really think that I would have let her that close to me in power?"

As Morro talked, the mud at his feet started to shift. Bubbling up, the mud collected together, rising until it took the shape of a large humanoid creature. The monster sniffed, his large teeth shifting up before his yellow eyes landed on Morro. The monster stepped forward, mud oozing from his leg before he lifted his arms over Morro's head.

"Behind you!" Lloyd warned.

The monster roared, grabbing Morro by his ankle.

"What the-"

The monster started to shake him, swinging him back and forth. Lloyd turned to the crystal in his hand before looking back at Morro. Shaking his head, he ran forward, throwing a ball of energy at the monster's arm.

Moaning, the monster let go of Morro as its arm dropped back into the pool of mud. Morro stood up, wiping mud off him with disgust. "What is that thing?"

"My father told me about these before," Lloyd said. "We must be in the Realm of Madness. Supposedly, craglings are the embodiment of darkness. They'll eat anyone that's unlucky enough to become trapped here."

The mud around them started to foam. Lloyd started to step back, but turning around he saw that a hill was blocking them from behind. Around them craglings started to form, enclosing them in a ring.

"We have to work together to take them down," Lloyd said.

"Work together?" Morro snorted. "I'd rather take my chances with jumping into the nearest pool of water."

"We don't have a choice. Either we team up or the craglings won't stop until they get both of us. Besides, I thought that you said you wanted fights to be fair."

Morro rolled his eyes, saying nothing. But as Lloyd spun into a whirl of spinjitzu, Morro joined him. Green and gray spun together, slicing into the line of craglings and sending mud flying.

Morro tore through a cragling, spinning to a stop to send a blast of wind into the monster's chest. The cragling's face fell, feeling where a hole gaped in his chest before he slopped back onto the ground. Lloyd airjitzued over a group of craglings and shot a beam of energy through the row, making them drop down.

Spinjitzuing together, their tornadoes started to merge together, shooting the remaining craglings back into the dark terrain. As they came to a stop they were caked in mud. Lloyd smiled, wiping the mud off his face. "You know, you're actually not that bad of a fighter."

Morro's grin faded when he realized what he was doing. "Unless you haven't noticed, we're done. If you're trying to manipulate me you're going to have to try harder than that."

"There is another option," Lloyd continued. "We don't have to fight each other if you don't want to release the Preeminent. No one's forcing you to work with them."

"You do realize what you're suggesting? Betraying them would forever make me an outsider. They would stop at nothing to hunt me down and make me a prisoner of the Preeminent."

"What do you have to go back to?" Lloyd interrupted. "I'm not forgiving you. I really don't think I ever will be able to. But I know that you became Wu's student for a reason. If we work together, then we can prevent the Preeminent from being released."

"I became a ninja to give others what I never had," Morro said softly before shaking his head. "At this point, there's no use in going back and reminiscing about the past. I'm done with being the Preeminent's pawn. You have the realm crystal. Use it and leave me."

"Sensei always says never put off tomorrow what can be done today. We'll go to the Underworld and finish this together," Lloyd said.

Morro flinched as Lloyd offered him the crystal. He struggled to hide the emotions washing over his face. Something about Lloyd's actions brought back the part of himself he had buried years ago and the need he had to belong somewhere. Lloyd was foolish for trusting him, but something about his actions touched him. It was such a display of good nature and good intentions that everything suddenly clicked. Morro knew why Lloyd was the green ninja. Despite everything he had gone through, evidenced when Morro went through his memories, he pushed forward and didn't let it control him. Unlike himself.

Realizing how long it was taking him to respond, Morro took the realm crystal while looking to the side. "This is a temporary arrangement. I'm only joining you until the Preeminent is destroyed. After that, all bets are off."

Lloyd sighed, but nodded. "The important thing is that we're in agreement."

As Lloyd touched the crystal a portal washed over them, sending them spiraling back onto the platform. Lloyd swayed to the side before he regained his balance. Parts of the earth wall were destroyed, opening a window from them to see the battle. The ninja were fighting the onslaught of ghosts well, but it was clear that the battle was starting to wear them down.

In the middle of striking a ghost with an aeroblade, Kai turned to face them. His eyes flashed with concern at seeing Lloyd next to Morro with realm crystal in hand. "Lloyd, where were you? What did he do to you?"

"Quiet!" Bansha lashed. The ninja stopped fighting as the ghosts flew to her side. Bansha outstretched her hand to Morro, her voice dangerously cold. "Give me the realm crystal Morro. I will do it myself."

"I'm afraid that things have changed since we've last seen each other," Morro replied, smirking as he threw the crystal into the air and caught it, shaking it so that it shined into her eyes.

"Um, did I just hear him right?" Jay asked in a falsely cheery tone. "Did Morro, our enemy, and the one who possessed Lloyd, just say that he's not going to do what he's been planning to do this whole time!"

"He was Sensei's student," Zane said slowly before shaking his head. "We should be extremely cautious when dealing with him. This is not the first time that he has resorted to trickery."

Bansha growled. "We have dealt with you for far too long! I will take the crystal myself!"

Bansha snapped forward and grabbed Morro's arm. As she lifted his arm, trying to pry the crystal out of his hand, Morro shot a blast of wind into her eyes.

Bansha howled, her face contorting into something inhuman. "Get him!"

All at once, the ghosts surrounding him flew forward. Morro evaded them, but it was taking all of his effort to outmaneuver the ghosts surrounding him.

"Morro isn't tricking us," Lloyd said. "I know that it's hard to believe, but you have to follow my judgement on this."

"Why should we trust him?" Kai demanded, his voice rising. "Morro isn't sane Lloyd. I'm not going to give him the chance to hurt you, not after what happened."

The ninja were caught in a moment of indecision. As Kai and Lloyd faced one another, Cole stepped between them. "We aren't accomplishing anything by arguing. We go on Lloyd's call." As Kai opened his mouth Cole held up his hand. "And that's whether or not you agree with it. I can't believe I'm saying this," Cole said, turning to the ninja, "but I think our best bet is to help Morro."

"Are you done arguing?" Morro said, looking back as he ducked to avoid an attack. "At this point, they'll get the crystal."

Exchanging glances, the ninja nodded, holding up their aeroblades. "Ninjago!"

The ninja ran forward, slicing their aeroblades through the wave of ghosts. However, even as the air became thick with green smoke, ghosts continued to advance.

"They're not going to stop," Morro shouted, hurriedly defending himself from the ghosts surrounding him, blocking them at various angles. "For centuries ghosts have wanted to experience the living world again. They'll risk being sent to the Cursed Realm if there's even a chance that they'll secure the realm crystal."

Lloyd pressed his back against Morro's, blocking an attack that almost grazed him. "Staying here is making us easy targets. We need to get out of here!"

"We can use the realm crystal," Morro said. Kicking a ghost back, he held up the crystal. As it started to glow Bansha's chilling voice echoed throughout the cavern.

"Now."

Positioned on a ledge, Soul Archer released his arrow. Time seemed to slow as it shot over the ghosts and each of the ninja before flying over to Morro, shooting the crystal out of his hand. Time returned and the crystal descended quickly down into the blackness, winking as its last spark of light was consumed. A roar boomed throughout the Underworld.

"We have to get out of here," Nya warned, anxiety in her voice. "The Underworld won't be able to support itself as the Cursed Realm is released. Everything in its path will be destroyed as it tries to free itself."

As the ninja ran forward the ghosts fell back as the cave shook violently. The ground was shaking back and forth, almost throwing them back as they ran up the staircase.

Jay was the last one to start reach the stairs. As his foot landed on the first step a green tentacle wrapped around his ankle, pulling him back.

"Hey, chew on this!" Cole shouted, holding out his hand as he ripped up a slab of earth. The tentacle retreated and as Jay gasped, falling back, Cole pulled him back up. "Don't worry, I got you buddy."

After running across the bridges separating the land pieces, the ninja arrived at the fortress. The Skullkin were surrounding the remains of the fortress, helping one another with the aftermath of the struggle with the ghosts. Nuckal handed Kruncha a leg before Kruncha whacked him.

"That's the wrong leg dummy!"

"Well, maybe you're the dummy!"

Wyplash looked up from his throne. "What-"

"The Preeminent's been released," Kai said bluntly. "Unless you want to be a graveyard of broken bones, you need to start acting like a leader and get your forces out of here."

Wyplash nodded dumbly before leaping up from his seat and grabbing the staff at his side. "Get the vehicles! It isn't safe here until the Preeminent is above ground!"

Running forward, the ninja jumped off the land piece before spiraling up on their dragons. Tearing through the realm with the Preeminent following after them, the dragons emerged from the earth and into the night sky.

Breaking a tentacle through the ground, the Preeminent started to pull herself up. The ghost warriors swarmed around her, helping her up until she was fully unearthed. Shining brightly green, the Preeminent was a conglomerate of writhing tentacles surrounding a large round body. The skin in the center started to pull apart, revealing a large mouth with spikes overlaying it. Hundreds of ghosts poured out of it, illuminating the darkness with a sickly green glow.

"The beginning of the era of the dead," Morro said from his dragon. "This will be...interesting."


End file.
